Complicated Disaster
by IrishNun
Summary: A female hunter knows more about the Winchester boys than they do themselves. She's also holding a few secrets which she's reluctant to share.
1. Prologue

**AN:** Okay, so I got an idea for this story about a year ago & it all came very fast… surprisingly. Although, I intended the fic to be a short one, it started to grow wings… and an engine! So, I split it into individual stories, which I was going to post separately but they have a common story line and a common character which I didn't want to lose.

So, here it goes. There are six stories, all set at different times. It started off with four stories but like I said, it grew an engine! I'll specify at the start of each story the approximate time they're set in, according to the show. Each story has a title and a number of parts.

Really hope you like it… feel like it's my baby… Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:**I only own the OCs

**Summary**: A female hunter knows more about the Winchester boys than they do themselves. She's also holding a few secrets which she's reluctant to share.

OoooO

**Prologue – a long, long time ago**

The full moon shone in the cloudless night. John threw the last piece of wood onto the flames. _It__'__s __a __terrible __night __for __hunting_, he thought. _There __are __too __many __shadows._ The burning flesh tickled the inside of his nostrils and entered his lungs. It was a smell he was normally used to but these were his friends and it was his fault they were burning. They shouldn't have died. He should have gotten to them quicker.

He reached into his cooler box and pulled out a beer bottle. He twisted the cap off and threw it back into the box. Then, taking a mouthful, he stepped beside the young girl. She had watched him pile the wood into a heap and place the wrapped salted bodies on top. She watched him throw lighter fluid over it and set it alight.

"I know what you're thinking, pebbles," John said taking another swig from his beer bottle. "You're thinking their deaths were your fault but they weren't."

"Are you sure?" she mumbled, "because it certainly feels like it."

He looked over at her and sighed. She was too young to be feeling this. It was too much anger for one child to bear. He decided then and there that he would help her. Not only would he help her get revenge but he would also train her to be a better hunter. _The __possibilities __are __endless_, he thought. He could introduce her to his sons and together they could fight the supernatural. And, maybe in time, they could be her family. But for now, he just stood beside her and together they watched the flames.

OoooO


	2. A time to Pretend: Chapter 1

**Title**: A Time to Pretend

**A/N**: This episode is based in series 2 of Supernatural, a couple of episodes after John's death.

**Disclaimer:**I only own the OCs

**Summary**: A female hunter knows more about the Winchester boys than they do themselves. She's also holding a few secrets which she's reluctant to share.

* * *

><p><strong>Part I<strong>

Yellow police tape blocked them from using the front door. Instead, they found an unlocked window and slipped their knife inside. The taller man took out his EMF reader and headed for the kitchen while his brother turned on a small flash light and snooped around the other rooms. The reader was detecting nothing as he scanned it over the windows and back door. On the floor, beside the sink, were the markings of where the young woman was found. He knelt down to move the reader over the area. He heard a click and he suddenly froze when the familiar object pressed into the back of his neck.

"Who are you?" a female voice appeared. He didn't even hear her come in. The house was supposed to be empty. He slowly stood up and raised his hands. "Who are you?" she asked again.

Another gun clicked. But this time she was the one who could feel a gun pressing into the back of her neck. "You first," Dean appeared just as secretly.

OoooO

She followed Sam into their motel room. He removed books from a chair and told her to sit down.

"Why do I feel like I'm in the hot seat, right now?" Her dark eye shadow and long lashes covered the colour of her eyes. She was wearing baggy denim jeans that swung around her legs as she sat down. Her slight New Yorker voice was hoarse like her throat had been yearning for a cough for years. The wrinkles in her long hair were in contrast to her clear youthful skin. Dean walked in front of her and stood to her right.

"You're not," Sam gently said, locking the door behind them and stood on her left.

"Yeah," Dean agreed studying her gun. It looked brand new but the scratches on the inside of the barrel told him it was well used. "We just had some books on it, so it should only be warm."

The young woman smiled. "You must be the brains of this operation."

He narrowed his eyes and scrunched up his face.

"What were you doing in that house?" Sam got no reply. "What were you looking for? Are you a thief?" he tried.

"I say we call the cops on her," Dean flexed his jaw after a few minutes of getting no response from her. "Say, we're nosey neighbours and we saw her trespassing."

"And I'll say, I was following two strange men snooping around with guns," she fought back. "I have your motel name and your room number. What do you have?" she cocked her head.

"There's only two motels in town, sweetheart. I think I have a fifty-fifty chance of getting it right."

"And who are they going to believe? A strange man or a scared little girl?" she looked up at him with a pout and a pair of puppy eyes. "What? You never met a girl who faked it before?"

"Stop it, both of you!" Sam stood between them. He placed one hand on Dean's chest and pushed him away. He could see in his brother's eyes that he was ready for a fight. "Let's start this again, okay!" He waited for Dean to step back and sit beside his locker. He then sat at the end of his bed directly opposite the stranger. She sighed and twisted uncomfortably in the chair. Her jaw cracked and she let her long auburn hair fall over her face.

"My name is Sam Winchester," he placed his hand on his chest. She looked up and swallowed hard as he introduced her to his brother Dean. "And you are?"

She looked over to the door as he waited for a reply and for a second she contemplated making a run for it. There would be no shame in running away. _Any __normal __girl __would __be __scared_, she thought. But something was forcing here to stay. "Stacy Stone," she reluctantly revealed shaking her head slightly. She thought, in this instance, it was best to reveal her true name.

"Well Stacy," Sam began, "I assume you weren't out trick or treating. What were you doing in that house with a gun?"

She looked from one brother to the other and raised her head back. Her long sigh showed she was hiding something. "The same reason as you," she replied slowly, "only without the silver bullets."

"You're a hunter? But you're so... so..." Sam raised his eyebrows after a moments thought.

"If you say feminine," she narrowed her eyes.

"How come we haven't heard of you?" Dean wondered taking the clip out of her gun.

"I didn't realise there was an official sign in sheet!"

"You're a hunter... alone... as in... on your own?" Sam was more and more surprised with each word that left his mouth. She barely looked his age.

"My partner died, alright," she revealed. "Not everyone is so lucky to have a travel buddy."

There was a moment of silence as her story sunk in.

"Look," she kept her jaw straight and rolled her tongue over her teeth, "this is a small case. I can take care of it myself. You two can go on your merry way," she ran two fingers in the air.

"No," Sam replied.

"No?" Dean repeated. "She's giving us a great pass here. Let's take it and run." They had been working case after case with little breaks the last few weeks and Dean would have been grateful for a rest.

But Sam was adamant. "The couple died on opposite sides of the town at practically the same time. Now, either there's a very fast demon on the loose or there's two of them."

Stacy shook her head slowly. "Please don't say what I think you're going to say."

"Let us help you. We can cut the job in half and be out of here quicker."

She looked over to Dean who didn't seem set on the idea.

"Don't mind him," Sam waved this hand in the air. "He always looks like that."

She studied her hands and cracked her knuckles. She wished she had listened to her head earlier and made a run for it but in the back of her head she knew he was right. If there was more than one demon it would be better if she weren't outnumbered. She rubbed her fingers over her eyebrows and dropped her head. "Fine," she whispered under her breath and reluctantly agreed to their help.

"Do you know the history of the town?" she asked Sam. He shrugged and said he only knew a little. "Twenty years ago," she looked down at her hands and rubbed them together like she was keeping them warm, "a couple were passing through on their way to their honeymoon. They checked into a motel and never checked out. Coroner said it was carbon monoxide poisoning although only trace amounts were found in their bodies. Two nights later, a local couple who just started dating were found on opposite sides of the street with scratches all over their bodies. They died of asphyxiation, yet there were no strangulation marks."

Sam asked her how far back in history had she gone.

"I'm going to the Sheriff's office in the morning to see how far the town's records go back."

"Let us do it," Sam pleaded.

She shook her head. "I haven't worked with anyone in a while…," she trailed off letting her eyes pass over Sam's. It only lasted a few seconds but Sam felt like her dark eyes were penetrating his soul. His nervousness forced him to look away. She stole a look from Dean and rolled her tense shoulders back.

"There's a diner just down the road here," she stood to leave. "They do good breakfasts."

"Okay, great," Sam followed her to the door and opened it for her. "We'll go see the Sheriff in the morning and meet you there."

"And my gun?" she held out her hand.

Dean reluctantly returned it to her. "How long did you say you've been a hunter?" he asked.

She slid the gun down the back of her pants. "All my life."

OoooO


	3. A time to Pretend: Chapter 2

**AN:**Thanks to everyone who has tagged this story. I'm off now for the long weekend and I won't get to update for a few days. So, I've decided to be nice & give you 2 chapters!

OoooO

**Part II**

The waitress placed the plates of food in front of them along with their coffees. She gave them a sad smile. Sam looked around the diner. There were pictures of John and Rachel, the two recent victims, on the walls of the diner with an array of flowers at the end of the counter.

"The Bureau is wearing black?" Both men looked up. "That's such a cliché," she threw her head back with laughter, her mood being lot more pleasant than the night before.

"What's so funny?" Dean straightened his tie.

"Nothing," she sat down beside him with a smirk on her lips. "You just remind me of someone, is all." Stacy grabbed Dean's coffee mug and took a mouthful before he could argue. "Urgh, how do you still have teeth?" she slid the mug back to him. She stole a stick of bacon from Sam's plate and stuck it in her mouth. "Have you seen the Sheriff yet?"

Sam nodded. "Those deaths twenty years ago were his first cases. He said any cases older than ten years were locked up in the back of the local library."

Stacy nodded. "That place doesn't open till after eleven." She suddenly spluttered on her bacon when a shadow appeared beside her. "Mrs Thorne!" she coughed to clear her throat.

"I looked for you at the motel," the old woman stood with a black shawl hanging over her shoulders. "And I know you gave me your cell number but I couldn't remember where I left it..."

"That's fine, you have me now," Stacy intervened and gave a warm smile.

The old woman looked at her company and Stacy introduced them as old friends with the Bureau. "We're very sorry for the loss of your daughter, ma'am," Sam leaned forward in his chair and shook her hand.

She nodded and bit her bottom lip to stop it trembling. "I'm interrupting your breakfast, I'll..."

"No," Stacy pushed her chair out and stood up. "I'm just finished." She put her hand around the woman's shoulders and took her to a quiet table in the corner.

Dean shook his head as he watched Rachel's mother break down. "There's something about her I don't trust," he said as he cut into his bacon again.

Sam groaned. He heard all this last night. He wasn't in the mood to hear it repeated. "Is it the fact that she's a lot more cheerful today because we did have a gun to her head last night, she had a right to be moody."

"That's not what I mean," Dean lifted up his fork and pointed it at him. "It's the fact that everyone here knows her. When she came in, the two guys at the counter said hello to her... by her name! Even that homeless guy knows her," he pointed over Sam's shoulder. He turned to see dirty man leaning across the counter holding a sign saying 'the future is unwritten'. "The waitress knows her and even the victim's mother knows her cell number. We've never worked a case where the whole town knew our names."

"Jealous much?" Sam smiled but Dean just grunted. "Either they just happen to guess her name right or she's been here before and Dad's number one rule was to never visit the same place twice. If she was a real hunter, she'd know that."

Sam tried not to laugh. "A real hunter?"

"I called Bobby last night. He knows all the hunters out there and he's never heard of a Stacy Stone," he revealed.

"She could have used a fake name."

"Maybe," Dean hadn't thought of that. "But there's something not right. She's hiding something from us. I can feel it in my bones."

Sam cut another slice out of his omelette and observed her interviewing skills. He could tell by watching Mrs Thorne that Stacy was genuinely affectionate towards her, like they had been friends for years. He did find one thing curious, although he didn't share it with his brother. There was a familiarity about her. Not in her face, though. He knew he had never met her before. But, there was a familiarity in her mannerisms. Last night, she had a tough exterior which was understandable as they were strangers then. And if he hadn't to see the sadness in her eyes, he wouldn't have believed she'd been hunting all her life. Maybe Dean was right to be suspicious.

Both brothers had finished their breakfasts and were on their second round of coffee when Mrs Thorne left and Stacy finally returned to their table. "You are not going to believe this," she quickly glanced around the interior of the diner only to see one other customer sitting at the end of counter, otherwise they were alone. "The coroner's official report came back," she whispered. "Carbon monoxide poisoning!" Neither man could believe it. "Mrs Thorne said that when she found Rachel on the kitchen floor," she continued, "the oven was on. Coroner is putting it as a double suicide."

Dean shook the shock out of his head. "So… what? They decided kill themselves in their own homes at the exact same time?"

"Or someone else did it for them?" Stacy turned just as the owner of the diner appeared.

"Hi Harry," she smiled up at him.

"Good morning Stacy, how's your vacation going?" he gave a genuine smile.

"Relaxing," she sighed.

"I'm sure it is," he leaned on her chair. "Are you boys here to solve Rachel and John's deaths?"

All three looked at each other and wondered what else he overheard. "The Sheriff said you're waiting for the library to open. I can open it early for you, if you want. They didn't put me in charge for nothing."

OoooO

After three hours of searching through files, past and present, Dean had given up. He rubbed his fingertips over his eyes. "Let's take a break."

Sam sighed too and leaned on the filing cabinet he was looking through. Stacy nodded and rubbed the heels of her hands over her eyes. They had found the case files on the two cases twenty years ago. Twelve years before that, two more couples died; one from carbon monoxide poisoning and the other from strangulation. Ten years before that another two couples died the same way.

Sam slammed the drawer shut. "They have nothing in common other than the first couple dies at the start of February and the second couple dies at the middle of February."

"How 'bout we talk about something else?" Dean tried.

"What do you have in mind?" Stacy wondered. So did Sam.

"Let's talk about how everyone in the town knows your name?" Sam growled at Dean. "What? It's a legitimate question?"

Stacy could feel their eyes penetrating her. "That's private," was all she could say.

But Dean didn't leave it alone. "If you want, we can share something about our lives with you. Like, did you know that Sam has a keen doll collection...?"

She shook her head. "You really want to know? Are you really that inquisitive?" Dean nodded.

"Fine," she threw her notes on the table. Sam remained standing. He wanted to hear the answer as much as Dean. "Two years ago," she began, "I got pregnant." Dean's jaw dropped a little. That wasn't the answer he was expecting. "I didn't want my child to have the same life I did. So, I found a small town, bought a small house and quit hunting." She paused.

Sam asked her what happened.

"After about six months," she breathed out, "I slipped on a wet floor and fell awkwardly. I lost the baby and that was that," she told the story like it wasn't her own. Dean apologised. "Can we get back to the case now?" she pleaded.

Sam stepped towards the table and looked at all the cases from above. "What's at Bloomfield House?" he asked.

"Just the remains of a house," Stacy thought. "The children of the town have an initiation game there. If you can stand in the porch for ten minutes without running away, you get in the gang. Why?"

"Because," Sam pointed out to two addresses, "two of the couples used to live there."


	4. A time to Pretend: Chapter 3

OoooO

**Part III**

Dean pulled the car up the driveway of Bloomfield House. All three got out and looked the house up and down.

"I'm half expecting Gomez and Morticia to greet us at the door," Dean raised his eyebrow.

Sam shook his head and walked around the front of the car. "Why the hell would anyone choose to live here?"

The house was barely keeping itself together. Large chestnut trees hung their branches over the roof and through the windows. Although the sun was still high in the sky, the house was in complete darkness. The shutters were just about clinging on and the roof tiles were falling off.

"I kinda like it," Stacy appeared between them. "What?" she shrugged when they both turned to her. "I'm sure it was pretty in its day."

Dean turned to Sam and shook his head. "We attract some weird chicks," he shrugged and stepped inside the house.

The hall was dusty and mouldy. An old grandfather clock stood behind the door with an unreadable face. All the gold framed pictures hanging on the walls were indistinguishable as they were all black with dirt.

"I'll take the basement. Sammy check up..."

"Why do you get the basement?" Stacy fought Dean's instructions.

"Because, I said so, that's why," he moved his eyes carefully around the hall looking for anything unusual.

"And, who died and made you the boss?"

"Well," he tried to find an excuse. She was his eye level so he couldn't use height as an excuse. "I'm the oldest."

"How do you know what age I am?" she asked as Sam appeared beside them after checking the outside of the house.

"You know the saying," Dean smiled, "age before beauty? Well, I'm obviously prettier than you."

"That's not what the saying means… you're totally twisting the words around," she shot back.

"Children!" Sam shouted in a whisper. They instantly stopped bickering. "I'll take the basement. Dean will go upstairs and Stac will stay on this floor and that's the end of it."

They both reluctantly agreed. Dean took out his gun and lifted the safety off. Slowly, he climbed the stairs, avoiding any obvious gaps. On one side of the hall, the ceiling had caved in. He carefully stepped over the debris and checked the two rooms at the end. Both were empty. "She's going to argue with me? Me!" he began to mumble to himself. "I knew working with her was a bad idea." While checking the bathroom, he noticed a flickering light under the third bedroom's door. He positioned himself in front of the door and kicked it in. He threw his gun out in front of him as the door swung closed behind him. "What the hell?"

Stacy was staring back at him. "What are you doing downstairs? Don't you trust me?" she shouted at him.

"I didn't touch the stairs! You're in the upstairs bedroom."

"No," she shook her head, "you're in the living room!"

Dean lowered his gun and looked at his surroundings. The furniture was old but dust free. Designed wallpaper draped the walls. Candles were lit in the corners of the room and beautifully hand woven mats covered the floor. Stacy placed her gun down the back of her jeans and walked over to the window. She pulled back the shutters and looked out. She narrowed her eyes and wondered aloud. "How the hell did I get upstairs?" she glanced back to Dean.

"Do you smell that?" he asked raising his nose in the air.

She nodded and smiled. It smelt like was slight but she could tell it was there. It was her mother's favourite flower. "Roses."

A gust of wind blew through the windows causing Stacy to catch her breath suddenly.

"Wow, what the hell was that?" she looked to Dean who was staring intensely at her.

"I don't know, but I certainly felt it." He walked up to her and passionately kissed her on the lips.

OoooO

Sam shone his flash light on the dark corners of the basement. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Free standing shelves covered the walls. Jars and boxes stood in their places. A small dirty window near the ceiling brought in little light. He took out his EMF from his jacket pocket and scanned it around the open spaces. The handle remained unmoved. He heard a thump overhead and he called out Stacy's name. The door of the basement banged shut and locked. After trying in vain to kick it down, he pointed his gun at the lock and shot it twice.

OoooO

"Dean, this isn't right."

"Really? It certainly feels right to me." He kissed her neck and she moaned slightly.

"This isn't us," she whispered and rubbed her hands all over his back. There was a strong taste of smoke from his lips but she couldn't stop herself.

"You're right... just give me… one second," he reached over to the door handle and twisted it open. In one motion, he opened the door and pulled Stacy out with him into the hall. They both ran in opposite directions and held onto the walls for support.

"What they hell was that?" Dean tried to catch his breath.

Stacy lowered her hands to her knees and shook her head. "A spell, maybe? But I have never felt anything that strong before."

Sam ran up the stairs and met them on the landing. "What happened to you guys?" They both pointed to the room that did the damage.

"No, don't," Stacy shouted but Sam ran in anyway. She followed him in confused. "I don't get it." The room was empty. "There was furniture in here and candles... and furniture," she stuttered.

Dean followed her in the room. He had taken off his jacket and was holding it in front of his belt. Sam looked at them both and noted how awkward there were around each other.

"Either you guys tell me what happened or I'm going to have to use my imagination," he threatened.

Stacy suddenly didn't know what to say. "I'm going to… wait... outside… in the car," she turned on her heels and quickly left.

Dean stepped out of her way. Sam's jaw dropped as the realisation hit him.

"No way!" his eyes widened. "You two?" A large grin was plastered on his face.

"Not intentionally," Dean shrugged. "It was some kind of spell or possession. Things just got out of hand... very quickly." He couldn't look at him.

"Oh my God," he put his hand around his brother's shoulders and laughed.

Dean grumbled. "Shut up!"

OoooO

Sam was asked to drive the car back and he followed them into the motel room. It had been a quiet car journey especially since Sam had insisted on playing 'I can't fight this feeling any more' on the radio. He hung around the door as Dean and Stacy sat on the two beds and stared blankly ahead. He unsuccessfully tried to hide his smile.

"I'm going to get some food," he informed them swinging the room keys in his fingers. "Either of you want anything?"

"Beer," was their immediate and only response. He nodded and left the room.

"I think I'll just... go to bed early," Stacy stood to leave. She didn't know what else to do. Although they were possessed, she now felt totally awkward around him. Even having a normal conversation with him was tough. She felt like a child trying to talk to a stranger.

Dean nodded and stood too. "I think I'll take a shower," he glanced her way but neither of them could look in each other in the eyes.

"Okay then," Stacy nodded and sucked in her lips. She tried to perk up and quickly walked out. Before the door locked behind her, she suddenly remembered she left her bag on the floor. She looked up to see Dean throw his shirt on the bed.

"Oh my god," she whispered.

"Do you mind?" Dean turned to her, slightly annoyed at the intrusion. "Some people don't like to be watched."

She stormed back into the room and pulled him into the bathroom. She flicked on the light switch and positioned him with his back to the mirror. Before he could argue, she lifted his vest up above his shoulders. There were finger-etched scratches all over his back.

"What the hell did you do to me?" he yelled as he tried to twist his head around further.

"This wasn't me," Stacy looked concerned. "You still had your clothes on, remember? You can't make these kinds of scratches through clothes."

"And you know that from experience?" Dean commented.

"Does it even hurt?" she touched one cut gently. Dean squirmed and she apologised. "We should tell Sam when he gets back."

Dean pulled down his vest. "Not going to happen, sister." He walked across the room.

Stacy shook her head and followed him out. "What? Why not?"

"Because," he lifted his shirt off the bed and went to put his hand in one of the sleeves, "this will freak him out."

Stacy grabbed the shirt from his hands. "We know and we're freaking out pretty well."

He snatched the shirt back. "He's my brother."

She took it again. "Exactly, which is why he needs to know."

"No, he doesn't," he grabbed it again and held it away from her so she couldn't get it. "This isn't even important to the case."

"Really?" she raised her eyebrows. "Because the last person who got scratches like that, died."

The door opened and they both stood still. Sam entered carrying a six pack of beer. "I got the beer first in case you..." He looked up to see Dean putting on his shirt. "What's going on?"

Stacy looked to Dean. "Nothing," he grunted.

She shook her head. She couldn't believe he was going to keep this from his brother. "I was just leaving," she sighed, grabbed her bag and headed for the door.

"But," Sam stammered not knowing what to do, "you haven't eaten all day."

She tore a bottle from the box and nodded at him. "Cheers!"

Sam stuck his hand out to stop her from leaving. "Stac," he said softly, "whatever Dean said, he didn't mean it."

She smiled up at him. She liked how he defended him without even knowing the conversation. It was moments like this that she missed having family around her. "I'm in the last room at the end if you're looking for me."


	5. A time to Pretend: Chapter 4

**AN:**I'm back after a long weekend of doing nothing & what a surprise I got when I found out that people are actually reading this! So happy… yay! Hope you like this part too… think it's my favourite.

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><p><strong>Part IV<strong>

Stacy was finding it hard to sleep. It was like there was a heaviness on her chest. A creak in the room woke her up suddenly. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness and she could immediately make out a man's face. Suddenly, he jumped on top of her wrapping his hands around her neck, squeezing it tightly. She gasped for air and his smile surprised her. Reaching under her pillow, she grabbed a small dagger and stuck it into his side. He yelled out in agony and disappeared into the shadows. She sat up in the bed and tired to suck in enough air to fill her lungs again. She covered her cold neck with her hands to warm it up.

When she finally caught her breath, it dawned on her who else might be in trouble. With the dagger still in hand, she ran out the door and passed the parked cars in her bare feet. Using the heel of her foot, she kicked in the selected door.

Without flicking on the lights, she could see another shadow leaning over Dean. The woman looked back angrily. Stacy sliced the dagger through the apparition causing it to scream and disappear.

Sam woke up with the commotion and reached out to the side lamp. "What's going on?" he asked groggily.

Stacy leaped onto Dean's bed and tried to wake him. His skin was cold to the touch and she couldn't find a pulse. She ripped open his shirt and immediately started compressions.

Sam now sat at the side of his bed. He was wide awake but was unable to move. Stacy threw the pillow out of her way, tilted Dean's head back and began to breathe into his lungs. She started compressions again. She could hear Sam silently sob and she tried to avoid looking up at him while she worked on his brother. She repositioned his head so she could give him another deep breath. And before she could get a second breath in, Dean gasped for oxygen.

He opened his eyes wide and sat up quickly. Sam lunged forward and wrapped his arms around his older brother. Dean looked around the room as though his surroundings were unfamiliar to him. Stacy crawled off the bed and stumbled across the floor. She steadied herself against the wall. Then she covered her mouth and let the tears flow.

OoooO

"You should have told me," Sam stepped back after cleaning his brother's back wounds.

"You said that already," he grunted.

"Is that what the two of you were arguing about when I came back earlier?"

Dean glanced at Stacy. She was leaning her hip against the wall and was staring at nothing on the floor. She was still in her night dress but Sam had hung his coat over her shoulders to keep her warm.

"Did you recognise them?" Sam dipped a cloth into a bowl of warm water and wringed it dry. He called her name to wake her from her trance when she didn't answer.

"What? No," she shook her head then shrugged. "Maybe... I don't know." She took herself away from the wall and pointed behind her. "I've got some reference books in my room. I'll go get them." She took Sam's coat off and placed it on the back of a chair. Then she turned around and stepped into the refrigerated night.

OoooO

Sam slipped his hand through the unlocked door and knocked on the inside wall of her room. Stacy looked up from her work and sighed. "I was supposed to go back into you, wasn't I?"

He nodded and smiled. "Yeah and that was twenty minutes ago."

She apologised. "I just wanted to get this down before I forgot them."

She watched him look around the room. The sheets were clean, new towels were folded on the bed and there no details of the case hanging on the walls. "I like a clean room," she shrugged.

"I can see that," he smiled again. He walked over to what she was working on and picked up a sheet. It was a drawing of an old man with long tattered hair, a thick moustache and bulging eyes.

"That's who was in my room. The bulging eyes probably happened after he died though."

"This is amazing," he commented picking up another page. "You're an artist as well as a superhero. Is there anything you can't do?"

She smiled. "Hey, I had to return the favour some time," she stood up.

"What?"

"I said... you'll have to return the favour some time," she quickly changed her words and hoped he hadn't heard her the first time. She grabbed her boots from under the bed and tied them quickly as Sam looked over the two drawings. "Harry gave me a spare key to the library. I'll go over and check if they ever lived in the town."

"Let me do it," Sam held out his hand for the keys. "They kinda look familiar."

OoooO

Dean swung the door over again and tried to push it closed. It was no good. The lock was completely broken. The door wasn't even hanging straight any more. "We're going to have to pay for that, you know," he said taking a closer look at the lock. "How strong do you have to be to damage a door like this?"

She glanced up at him. "I have a black belt in Tai-Kwan Do."

"Really? How'd you even have time to..."

"My dad taught me," she interrupted him.

He shrugged and shook his head. "Is there anything you can't do?"

Swim, was the only thing she could say, but judging by his reaction that probably wasn't the answer he was looking for. "Your search history is crazy," she tried changing the subject. She was looking through Sam's laptop. Hers was damaged during a recent case. "Who the hell is Hook Man?"

"I thought you were looking for these ghosts," Dean walked back to her and sat down.

"I got like you," she shrugged, "bored."

Sam had been gone nearly two hours now and although neither of them would ever admit it, they were both scared to be alone. Dean picked up a book but quickly put it down again. "So, this partner of yours," he began. "Tell me how he died."

She typed some words into the laptop and huffed. "I already told you something about myself."

"Yeah, but this is different. Pretty please," he begged, "with cherries on top."

She looked over at his cheeky grin and gave him a similar one back.

"Was he a brother or boyfriend?"

"How do you know it was even a guy?" she didn't look away from the computer screen as she began to log out.

"Ah," he smiled nodding slowly. "So sister or girlfriend?"

She shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Put it back in the holster, cowboy."

He slapped his hand on the table. "C'mon," he whined. "You know I'm just going to keep asking until you tell me."

She raised an eyebrow. "What are you? Seven?"

"Eight, now c'mon!"

Breathing in deeply, she closed the laptop. She cleaned her teeth with her tongue and thought about her words carefully. "It was my mother," she revealed.

Dean raised his eyebrows. A small smile rested on his lips as she revealed that she lied about being a hunter all her life. "Until I was… about ten, my life was normal." She rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Apart from my parents disappearing every other weekend, it was pretty much perfect." She looked away. "Then they came home one day totally spooked and told me monsters were real," she said sadly then looked back at him. "And then it all changed. So, my first partner was my mother, then a friend and then a boyfriend. After that, I went rogue."

Dean thought about the order of people. "So, the friend turned into the boyfriend?"

Stacy shook her head. "No, they were two different people." Dean asked what happened to the boyfriend. "Things got… difficult. I told him the truth about my life and he couldn't handle it," she replied sadly.

"So, it wasn't because you got pregnant…" he nodded.

She looked straight into his eyes and pushed out her lips.

"I went too far, didn't I?" but he already knew the answer.

Sam appeared the door and kicked it shut behind him. He was carrying a large brown book with torn edges. "I don't think you're allowed to remove those types of books from the library," Stacy informed him as Dean helped clear the table. He placed the musty book with coffee coloured pages down on the table and swung it open. He pointed to a picture of a man holding a pipe. Stacy recognised him immediately and her stomach churned. She had a feeling it wasn't just Dean she was kissing in that house.

"Huh," Dean leaned over the book, "looks like he was born with those bulging eyes."

Sam informed them that his name was Sheriff Arthur Maloney from the next town over. His wife, Helen, reported him missing on February twentieth, 1927."

Stacy looked at the other people in the picture. She pointed to one in a long white dress. It was the woman that tried to kill Dean. "Is this his wife?"

"No," Sam smiled. "That's his secretary, Annabel Hickey. She was reported missing around the same time. There were rumours around the town that Helen found Arthur and the secretary cheating on her in Bloomfield House and may have killed them but there wasn't enough evidence. One year later today, Helen and her boyfriend were found dead in a locked garage. Their car was still running when they were found." Both Stacy and Dean nodded when they realised the carbon monoxide connection.

Sam then asked if either of them knew today's date. "Don't tell me I missed Paddy's day again," Stacy hoped. She never read the papers and she hardly paid attention to the news. The only days she knew were when Halloween and Christmas were celebrated. If she was lucky enough to pass a New Years Eve party, she knew another year had passed her by.

"It's the fourteenth," Sam revealed.

"Wait a minute," Dean's jaw dropped. "Are you saying I nearly died on Valentine's Day?"

"I think the bones are buried in Bloomfield House," Sam didn't pay attention to him. "They were probably killed in the room they were caught together in."

"The upstairs bedroom," Stacy whispered. "Okay, but this time let's all stick together. I don't want to open the door to the bathroom and end up in the kitchen."

She pushed out her chair as Dean grabbed his jacket. "Valentine's Day? Seriously!"


	6. A time to Pretend: Chapter 5

**Part V**

She had a third of the floor boards lifted when she decided to take a break. Sam and Dean were throwing their sledgehammers against the walls opposite her. She reached into her bag and realised she had left her water bottle in the car.

"I'll be back in a second," she told the brothers and dropped her tools.

She hopped over the open floor boards and skipped down the stairs. She grabbed the front door handle and had taken two steps outside when something unusual caught her eye. She rewound the two steps and looked at the old grandfather clock that was situated behind the door. It was polished clean with a spotless face. The pendulum was swinging yet there was no noise from it.

A young boy joined her from the next room and startled her. "Hello," Stacy wondered if he was a figment of her imagination.

"Hello," the boy, maybe ten years old, replied.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. It was almost six in the morning but the sun was barely awake.

"My friends dared me to come in here."

Stacy nodded and smiled. She looked out the door. "Did they now?" She saw a bush suddenly rustle.

"I'm supposed to go down to the basement and bring them a souvenir, but I'm too scared. Will you come with me?" he asked and held out his hand.

Stacy closed the door. "Of course I will, sweetheart."

She brushed some cobwebs away from her face and rubbed them off her hands. "What kind of souvenir had you in mind?" The basement was dark with shelving on every wall and cardboard boxes in every corner.

"I like trucks," the boy skipped ahead of her.

"I like trucks too," Stacy shrugged. "But, I don't think you're going to find many toys in this house." She didn't notice the boy being engulfed by the shadows. Instead, she turned her attention to the items on the shelves.

She picked up a jar. "How about one of these jars of… whatever the hell it is?" The item inside had turned to mould. The other jars contained foods surrounded in their juices.

"Pickled onions," a male voice replied. The voice was a lot older than she was expecting.

Slowly she put the jar back on the shelf and cautiously she turned her head around to face him, straightening her back. The rest of her body remained in the same position.

"Where's the boy?" she asked but she was told there was no boy. "Where's your girlfriend?" she gulped. Taking care of business, she was told. "And what about you?" she could feel her heart beating through her chest.

His tongue slapped against his hard pallet when he spoke making an unnerving sound. "I'm your worst nightmare," he told her with a smile.

"You're tame compared to my nightmares," she informed him.

Out of nowhere, something hard slapped her on the back of her head. She fell forward knocking into the shelves. She heard glass jars break and she smelt the hint of onions and roses. She opened her eyes long enough to see Arthur and Annabel step towards her.

OoooO

"You know what I don't understand," Dean swung his sledgehammer at another part of the wall. "The ghosts only attacked couples, right? So why'd they go after me and Stacy?"

Sam shrugged. "I dunno, maybe they got impatient."

Dean lowered his hammer and wiped his brow. "This is a dead end," he sighed.

Sam tore through the hole in front of him and looked inside. It was empty. He agreed. "Maybe, they didn't die in this house after all."

Dean looked over his shoulder and wondered how long it took to get a bottle of water from the car.

When they couldn't see her outside, they started calling her name. But the strong wind swirling around them carried their voices nowhere. They ran inside to check all the rooms again. Dean tried opening the basement door but it wouldn't budge.

"I'll get some weapons," Sam slapped him on the shoulder, "and try to find another way in."

Dean ran upstairs and brought back a sledgehammer. He threw it at the door and shouldered his way into the basement. He ran down the steps and strained his eyes in the darkness. He whispered her name but heard nothing in reply. Then there was a rolling sound. He looked down to see a glass jar roll towards his feet. He picked it up and threw it at the only window in the room. It may have been a small window but it engulfed the room with light.

In front of him, Stacy was being held up high against the wall. The ghost of Arthur was holding her by her neck, with his other hand over her mouth. Dean grabbed him from behind allowing her to drop to the floor and catch her breath.

"Get out of here," he shouted at her as Arthur turned his attention to him.

Stacy did as she was told but stopped when she saw the sledgehammer at the top of the stairs. She looked back down and noticed something curious. Behind one of the free standing shelves was a brick wall. Going on her instincts, she moved the shelves out of the way and threw the hammer at the wall causing the cement to shudder.

Annabel suddenly appeared beside her and pulled her onto the floor. "Why won't you die?" she towered over her, but disappeared with the sound of a sudden gun shot running through the air.

Sam leaned over Stacy and held out his hand to pick her up. He asked if she was hurt.

"Probably," she dusted herself down, "but I'm running on adrenaline right now." She pointed out the wall to him. A feature wall would be built close to the original walling but this one was at least a foot out from where it should be.

"Making it a good hiding place," Sam nodded.

He left her to help his brother. She threw the hammer at the wall again as another gun shot rang out. The cement crumbled slightly. Before she could do anything further, Annabel pulled her away again. Tired of the countless interruptions, Stacy punched the ghost in the face and kicked her high in the chest. Sam shot the ghost as she was thrown back.

Dean's jaw dropped. "I think I'm in love," he mumbled.

Stacy sighed. "Shut up and help me."

She lifted the hammer again, this time making a fist sized hole. Dean reached his hands inside and started tearing the bricks apart. Stacy did the same as Sam kept guard. A gun shot rang out.

"You'd better by right about this, Stac," he called back. "I'm running low on shells." Another shot rang out.

Dean threw the hammer at the wall, causing the whole thing to crumble. Stacy reached down and found some plastic. She tore a hole in it with her fingers and two skulls stared back at her.


	7. A time to Pretend: Chapter 6

**AN: **Thanks for everyone's kind words. Really appreciate it. Hope you enjoy this just as much...

* * *

><p><strong>Part VI<strong>

"You actually drive a Lincoln," Dean grunted. "You may as well put on a cap and stick an old lady in the back seat."

She threw her bag in the boot and hid a small smile. They were back at the motel parking lot. The skeletons were dust and the ghosts were gone. "Did you ever think there's a reason why you're the only one who still drives an Impala? I mean not even Fred Flintstone would be caught it in," she turned to face him.

Dean narrowed his eyes. "It's a classic," he replied.

She huffed out a laugh. "Yeah, that's what they call something that's passed its sell by date."

He scrunched up his face in annoyance. She loved how easy it was to wind him up even though she said things she didn't mean. She knew how important the Impala was to them but she wasn't about to tell him that.

Sam threw his bag in the car and just grinned. "I know we haven't known each other long but I am _really_ going to miss you," he concluded from their quarrel. "Why don't you come with us? We already came from the east."

"Are you kidding me?" she laughed. "I have to clean up the messes you've made."

Her smile turned into sadness as she gulped hard. She tapped her fingertips on the top of her car. She sighed heavily and wondered how she was going to divulge her secret. "I think I should tell you something now," she said afraid to look up at them. She cleared her throat. "I knew your father," she decided to just blurt it out. "He... helped me out on a case a while ago. I couldn't believe it when he passed. He was good friend."

She shyly looked up at Sam. His eyes watered over and his bottom lip began to quiver. _That__'__s __why __she __was __so __familiar,_ he thought. She had some of his father's traits. Not large enough to be significant but just enough to say that she was in his company. She reminded him of Dean. He thanked her and gave her a warm hug. "Take care of yourself, Sam," she whispered.

"You too," he let go and they shared a smile. She waited for him to open the passenger door and sit inside before stepping in front of Dean.

"I'm not one for hugs," he exclaimed before she could even try.

"I kind of figured that," she smiled and turned to see if Sam could see them. He was watching them using the rear view mirror. "I know you're the older brother and everything but… you can't protect him forever. He has to learn to take care of himself. He's a lot stronger than you think."

Before he could ask what she meant, she flung her arms around his shoulders and breathed in the smell of his leather jacket. She waited for him to hold her back but when it didn't happen she closed her eyes and leaned into his ear.

"There's a war coming, Dean. And the Devil's looking for revenge."

He pulled away from her and wanted to look into her eyes but she desperately avoided his stare. "This is my number," she slipped a piece of paper into his pocket. "Call me when you're ready to hear more." She turned to walk away but he grabbed her by the arm and held her back.

"Wait, what does that mean? I'm ready to hear more now."

But she shook her head. "No, you're not."

"Why not? Why can't you tell me?"

She sighed. "Because... I promised your father," she looked at him sadly. She pulled her arm back, sat into her car and drove away.

Dean sat into the front seat and turned the key in the ignition.

"What was that about?" Sam asked with concern.

Dean didn't look up. "She wouldn't tell me," he shook his head and pretended he didn't care. He pulled the car out onto the road and drove in the opposite direction.

Stacy watched the Impala speed down the road from her side mirror. She flicked down the sun visor to protect her eyes from the morning light. A pocket sized baby picture was sticking out and as she glanced up at it, the memories flooded back.

OoooO

She awoke in the small white hospital room to the sound of a familiar voice.

"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?" he asked her with worry. His voice was hoarse and his eyes were red like he hadn't slept properly in days.

She pulled herself up in the bed and fixed a cushion behind her back. "It's nice to see you too." Her left hand was wrapped up as well as her foot. They were both sore to move.

"You shouldn't be... you should be resting," he sighed.

"I am... I was," she tried to explain. "It's just... a friend was in trouble and I was the only one who could help."

"So, how did you manage to fall?" he questioned her.

She looked away and let her head fall on her shoulder. "I slipped on his blood after I killed him." She glanced back to him as he groaned uncomfortably in the chair. "How'd you find me anyway?"

"I'm still down as your emergency contact."

Stacy closed her eyes and let her head fall back. "Oh yeah, I've been meaning to change that."

"Don't," he touched her hand. "I'm still your guardian."

She shook her head. "You stopped being my guardian a long time ago."

A young doctor entered the room. He was wheeling in a sonogram behind him. "You're awake," he exclaimed. "Brilliant!" He parked the machine beside her bed and looked to her companion. "I assume you're John Winchester?"

The other man in the room nodded. It was the only time he ever put his real name on a form. "I'm this one's godfather," he gave the doctor a weak smile.

"Brilliant!" the doctor seemed excited. "It's good to have family around at a time like this."

Stacy and John glanced at each other as he plugged in the machine. "Now," he turned to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "You had a nasty fall. The chances of losing this baby are..."

"Just tell it to us straight, doc."

The doctor nodded and squirted the cold gel onto her stomach. John squeezed her hand as they watched the screen for movement. Seconds of silence were replaced with a fast thumping sound. "A strong heartbeat," the doctor smiled. "He's a fighter," Stacy smiled back relieved that he was still alive.

When the doctor had left, John asked her about the baby's father.

"He doesn't know and he'll never find out," she said looking at the printed picture the doctor had left for her and told him she was giving the baby up for adoption.

"Are you sure?" he questioned.

Stacy nodded. "I can't do like my mum did. I can't be a mother and a hunter. If I keep this baby, I'd be looking over his shoulder as well as my own. I'm not ready for that much responsibility especially knowing... everything," she shook her head. "I nearly lost him today and he's not even born yet! If he's adopted, he'll go to a normal family and live a normal life."

John nodded. "Then I'll stay with you until he's born."

"You can't do that. What about your boys?" she sighed.

He smiled gently. "Hey, you're family too and my boys will be fine without me for a while."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>Story 1 complete. Tell me what you think. Are you bored? Or do you want some more?

Story 2 is coming soon.

*Hint* There's going to be more of John in it. *smiles*


	8. The Small Print: Chapter 1

**A/N:** For those who are still interested in this, I present to you Story 2 of 'Complicated Disaster' titled, 'The Small Print'.

This episode is based in series 5 of Supernatural. Jo & Ellen are still alive, Bobby is still walking. If some of it sounds familiar, it's because you'll be reading a bit of the prologue again.

**Summary:** What if the information on Lucifer doesn't come from Crowley?

* * *

><p><strong>The Small Print<strong>

**Part 1**

Sam and Dean arrived a few hours after Jo and Ellen. Bobby and them were in the living room surrounded by mess and chaos.

"Is the maid off this week?" Dean mumbled at his surroundings.

"We've found something," Jo passed in front of them stepping over a pile of plates.

Sam picked up the dirty dishes and put them into the kitchen sink as Dean stepped over to Bobby. The peak cap, bearded man looked tired as he stood to face Dean and handed him a sheet of paper. Dean looked down at the cryptic lines of boxes and shaped. At the bottom was written 'see A.S.'

"What the hell is A.S.?" he asked.

"We think it'll lead to the translation," Ellen piped up. "But we don't know if it's a place, a person, a book or what."

When Sam came back into the room, Bobby asked them for John's journal. "This thing is written in his handwriting. We might be lucky to find something in his journal."

Dean handed it to him but was sceptical. "What does this have to do with stopping Lucifer?"

Bobby told them about their theory of locking Lucifer back inside his cell.

"Like the seals that were used to open it?" Sam asked.

Ellen nodded. "Only we think this is an actual key. Unfortunately, its location was torn out and was substituted with John's handwriting."

A piece of paper fell out of the journal and floated onto Bobby's shoes. He bent down and picked it up. Dean slipped the note out of his fingers and read it too. He smiled and showed it to Sam. "Remember her?"

Sam nodded and smiled as the memories flashed back.

"Is she still hunting?" Bobby enquired.

Both brothers tilted their heads. "You know her?"

Bobby shrugged slightly. "Not exactly, I knew her mother." He raised his eyebrow and smirked. "She had some stones on her. One of the most exciting hunters I've ever seen. John was smitten with her."

Dean's nose scrunched up at the possibility that his dad had had a girlfriend. "Do I really want to be hearing this?"

But Bobby told him it wasn't like that. "Believe me, he tried but she was a devoted wife and mother..." he trailed off. He then moved over to Sam and handed him the phone and number.

"And tell me why we're calling her again?" the tall man asked.

"Because, her mother was called Annabel and at this point it's the closest thing we have to an A.S. Who knows? This girl might know something."

"Wait a minute," Dean wondered. "When I called you three years ago asking you about this girl and you said you never heard of her."

Bobby admitted making a promise to John that he wouldn't admit to knowing her to anyone. Dean sighed. "Okay, is everyone a member of the Babysitters Club?" he held up his hands and looked around the room.

OoooO

The familiar black Lincoln pulled up outside the house. A tall woman stepped out. Her hair now tight, short and jet black. She grabbed her belongings from the back seat and slammed the door shut. She threw her watchful eyes over her shoulder and across the car graveyard, cautious of any slight movement. A tattoo of a black wilting rose peeped out from under her jacket. She stepped around the car and slung her bag over her shoulder. Her eyes narrowed to the sight of the black Impala and she furrowed her brow. She slid her fingers over the dusty hood.

"I wouldn't do that if you want to keep your hand," a voice appeared some distance from her.

She swung her head around and her brick wall instantly dropped when she recognised his face. "Sammy," she whispered as a gentle smile appeared in the corner of her lips. They met half way and wrapped their arms around each other.

"It's good to see you again, Stacy," Sam said when he let her go. "Thanks for coming out to us."

"Hey," she waved her hand in the air, "the visit was way overdue."

Sam threw his arm around her shoulders and walked with her up to the house. He stopped in front of Bobby and began to introduce them.

"You're a lot hairier then I remember," Stacy smiled as she hugged him. "It suits you."

Bobby rubbed his chin and blushed. "Oh yeah, I forgot I only had a shadow the last time we met."

Sam looked confused. "I don't know which is more surprising. The fact that you've met each other before or that there was a time when you were clean shaven!"

Bobby growled and motioned her inside his house. She looked around the room in shock. "Jesus Bobby did the maid come, see and run away?"

He huffed a laugh and introduced her to Jo and Ellen. "And, of course, you know Dean."

Dean got up from the couch. His shirt hung open. His sleeves were rolled up. He cleared his throat to whisper her name. She nodded and raised mouth into a smile. She was about to get closer to him when a vision appeared beside them. Stacy grabbed a weapon from inside her jacket and went to attack it but Dean stopped her by grabbing her arm.

"It's a demon!" Stacy protested.

"No, he's an angel."

"That's worse!" she shook her head.

"No, it's fine," Sam came up to reassure her. "He's a... friend."

Stacy narrowed her eyes as Castiel introduced himself. "Is this why I'm here?" she shook her head. "To make friends with angels?" she let Sam take the weapon away from her.

"Not exactly," Dean reminded her of the last conversation they had. Her face dropped out of anger to surprise and her breathing became heavy. She looked to Bobby for confirmation who nodded.

She looked up at Sam. "It's time to tell us what you know," his eyes fell on her.

She turned back to Dean and nervously swallowed. "You boys are quite intimidating when you want something."

OoooO

Stacy, Sam, Bobby and Jo sat around the table. Dean and Ellen sat on the couch opposite them, while Castiel leaned against a wall. Stacy moaned slightly as the familiar cold beer ran down her throat. It had been a long time since she had allowed alcohol touch her lips. The last time it got so bad, she didn't know how to stop. But this time she needed some courage. Putting it on the table, she caressed the mouth of the bottle with her finger tips and told her audience of the day John Winchester saved her life.

"I was seventeen when I tried my first case," she gave a quick glance at Sam. "A demon was killing young mothers," she explained. "But it got a little too much for me to handle, so I asked my parents for help. They were already dead by the time John arrived. The yellow eyed demon, he called it." Sam and Dean shared a look. She picked up the bottle ready for another drink and shook her head. "It was the worst seventy-two hours of my life."

OoooO

"I know what you're thinking, pebbles," John said taking a swig from his beer bottle. "You're thinking their deaths were your fault, but they weren't."

"Are you sure?" a young Stacy answered, "because it certainly feels like it."

He took another mouthful. "This case was too big for you to handle alone. If it weren't for me, you'd be dead too."

"Well, whoop-di-do! You're the next Indiana Jones," she mumbled.

The large flames of the fire engulfed the wrapped bodies of her parents. The wooden branches crackled loudly on the moonlight night. Her green and purple dyed hair hung over her shoulders as her eyes stared into the blinding yellow light.

"So, what happens now?" she sighed.

"That's up to you," John watched the flames too. "You can either go live a normal life or continue on the path you grew up on. Either way, I can take to a safe place until you decide." He placed his hand on the back of her neck and squeezed it gently. "You don't have to be strong right now, you know."

She sighed and looked up into his sad eyes. Her eyes watered. "Why'd you have to go and say that to me?"

OoooO

Bobby brought her out of her memories. "I remember that night," he nodded. "John showed you to a room upstairs and you didn't come down for nearly two days."

Stacy smiled gently at him. "No offence Bobby, but ham sandwiches for breakfast doesn't exactly get a girl excited!"


	9. The Small Print: Chapter 2

**A/N: **John or Dean? Tough choice! Dean is amazingly handsome and when I see his face, I drool but when John smiles… I just melt!

There are a couple of flashbacks in this. Tried my best not to make it confusing.

* * *

><p><strong>The Small Print<strong>

**Part 2**

Her memories flashed back.

Stacy tip toed down the staircase. She saw John's jacket drooped over the back of a chair. Making sure she wasn't being seen, she slipped her hand through the pockets and pulled out his wallet hoping to see some green notes.

"You know if you wanted money, all you had to do was ask?" He was leaning against the wall watching her every move. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and his eyes sparkled with a deep smile.

Stacy straightened her back slowly. "And where would I go?" She shook her head turning to him. "I don't even know where I am."

John walked up to her and took back his wallet. Her flashed a small photo at her. "Those are my boys; Dean and Sam," he said proudly.

Stacy followed him into the next room dragging her feet behind her. "Yeah, I've heard you talk to mom about them. They're cute!" She sat down at the table and twirled some of her hair around her fingers then studied it intensely. "They taken?" Boys were the last thing on her mind but any distraction was welcome.

He moved some books out of her way. "Sam's roughly your age and I suppose I shouldn't be carrying a picture of them around but..." He dropped his head and went quiet for a few moments. "You want a drink?" He quickly walked to the kitchen and opened the fridge. He opened two bottles of beer and handed one to her. "Don't tell your...," but he stopped himself before saying parents.

She looked down at the table and sighed before taking a swig. She wasn't ready to talk about them just yet. She wiped the pain out of her eyes. "What you working on?" she sighed pointing to the many books he had opened.

"I'm looking for a weapon." He described the Colt to her. "It can kill everything including that yellow eyed demon of ours." He handed her a book.

She looked down at the book then back at him and twisted her mouth. "Do I have a choice?"

"Of course," he smiled again and sat down beside her. She groaned. His smile always worked on her.

The sun fell with each passing hour and shadows appeared and disappeared in the room. Each unwanted book was thrown to the floor and their hopes grew smaller and smaller. When there were only a few books left, the lights flickered off and a voice excused himself. John and Stacy looked up from their notes to see a man standing in the kitchen wearing a pin stripped suit. He was surrounded by a white blinding light that slowly dissipated. John kicked back his chair and quickly pointed a pistol at the stranger. Stacy stood too and stepped behind John.

"This house is protected. How did you get inside?" John spat out.

"Wherever Stacy is, I can follow," the stranger replied gently. He was a tall man with strong shoulders. His jaw was square and although his eyes were black, they didn't look demonic.

John glanced over his shoulder to his confused godchild.

"Annable didn't tell you?" the stranger sighed at the thought of having to explain himself again. "My name is Raphael. I am an angel of the Lord. Your weapons cannot harm me."

John lowered his gun. His eyes widened and he let his mouth drop. "Bullshit!"

Stacy looked from John to the stranger and shook her head. "Aren't angels supposed to have wings?" she asked and looked to John for guidance when the intruder didn't reply. "Are we supposed to be running or attacking right now?" she whispered.

"Well, normally I would be attacking," he cocked his head, "but how do I kill something I didn't even know existed."

_He__'__s __right_, she thought. Out of all the myths and lore she's studied, she never once looked into the existence of angels.

She hardly registered what the stranger was saying. She still couldn't believe he was an angel and not just any ordinary angel but an archangel. She wondered what they proper etiquette was for meeting an archangel. Was she supposed to courtesy or kneel? Was she even allowed to touch his hand? He wasn't God... _God_, she thought. _God __lets __this __happen_?

John turned to her and she broke away from her thoughts.

"Stacy," Raphael gave a gentle smile. "You are my true vessel."

_Me_, she thought. Her parents told her not to trust anyone except family, no matter what your instincts told you. Angels were the exception to this too… weren't they? Her instincts told her no… but they're angels.

"You can't have her," John threw his hand out in protection mode. She looked up to him and was grateful he was there with her. She didn't know how she would do this alone.

"You're right," Raphael nodded. "I can't force her to do anything. She has to let me wear her."

She gulped hard. "Wear me? No, I'm not a coat!" she snapped. _Why __did __I__snap?_

Raphael smiled. "But you see Stacy, this is your destiny. Everything has already been decided upon. It was known long ago what each person would be. So there's no use arguing God about your destiny. Anyway, it's not like I'll keep you forever," he shrugged a shoulder. "When the event is over, I'll return you to your former self."

She looked away from him slowly. _I__'__ve __just __lost __my __parents_, she thought. _Give __me __time __to __grieve_.

"I know the timing isn't…" his head dropped apologizing. "But the time for grieving can wait."

She stared into his eyes and could feel him walking around her head. He was reading her thoughts and she immediately let her mind go blank.

"Why now?" John got his question in before Stacy could agree to anthing.

"A war is coming and I'm..." he held out his hands and smiled, "... one of the good guys." He put his hands down at his sides and stood to attention. "I know what you're looking for and who you're looking for," he tried to bargin with them. "I can show you where he will be."

John was eager to learn more.

"I can show you a glimpse of the future," he looked from John to Stacy. "Think of it as a taste of all that could be on offer to you."

Stacy smirked and threw etiquette out the window. "If you say you've got a space time continuum in your back pocket, I'm leaving."

Raphael looked back to John.

"I'll do it," John agreed.

"What? Are you serious?" Stacy shouted. "You do know this is probably a trap, don't you?"

But John was adament. "It's just a quick visit. I'll be fine."

Raphael lifted his hand to his chest. "Oh, my apologies, I don't think you understood me. I can only take my vessel."

They both looked at the frightened girl.

"No way!" she shook her head frantically. "We don't even know what he is. Just because he says he's an angel, doesn't mean he is one. For all we know, he could be a demon doing what he does best... lying."

"I assure you, I am not a demon."

She gave him a sarcastic smile. "That's comforting, thank you."

Raphael leaned his head to the side. "You've lost your faith, huh," he frowned. "It's funny how people lose their faith so quickly after the death of a loved one."

_Yeah_, she thought silently. _It__'__s __hilarious!_

"You have to go to the future no matter what your faith. This demon killed your parents," John turned to her. "It killed my wife. Don't you want revenge?"

Of course she did, but she now didn't know what to do. She was suddenly finding it hard to breathe. She wanted to get out of the house. She needed to find fresh air.

"Look," John tried speaking to her softly. He held her by the shoulders and stooped down to her eye level. "This is all we've got. There's no hope in these books. Don't you trust me?"

She turned her head away. She hated that he was asking her that.

"Do you trust me?" he asked again in a whisper.

She looked into his eyes and saw the pain that she felt too. "You know I do," she mumbled. Her eyes began to water.

"Then do this for me."

She looked over at Raphael then back to John. She sighed heavily and reluctantly agreed. "But only to the future thing. Nothing more," she warned him.

Raphael flicked some flint from his suit jacket and shrugged. "I've got time to wait." And with a click of his fingers, they both disappeared.

OoooO

"So, what'd you see?" Jo asked. Like a child being told a ghost story, she was glued to her every word.

Stacy thought about her answer before she spoke. "I saw John and the yellow eyed demon in a dark room. John was wearing a hospital gown and he was holding The Colt."

"That was the night he died," Sam whispered.

"What else did you see?" Jo enquired.

Stacy sighed heavily. "I saw hell breaking loose... literally."

OoooO

"You saw my boys?" John looked at her worringly. His eyes filled slightly.

Stacy nodded after she arrived back in the room. "The place looked like a war zone. People were either dismembered or dying. I was standing beside Dean and Sam was across from us. But we weren't... us," she looked up at him and shook her head. Her legs felt weak. She felt like getting sick. "I think that angel is right. No matter how many times I say no, this thing… is my destiny."

John grabbed her by the arms and shook her. "Listen to me. There is no such thing as destiny. Destiny is just a made up word to make us believe we have no choices in life."

Stacy tried to believe him but she couldn't forget what she saw. "We have to tell them," she said after he had let her go. "We have to tell them what I saw. This is their destiny too."

"I'm not going to lock them up in a room and wait until all this passes over. Whatever we tell them now will change who they meet, speak to, save and kill."

Stacy stared at the floor as he spoke. Then she looked up at him slowly when it dawned on her what he was saying. "You're still thinking about The Colt, aren't you?" She couldn't believe it. "Your problem is so insignificant compared to the fate of the entire world." She waved her hands out to her side to display the enormity of the situation. "Angels, who are suppose to be there to protect us, are joining hands with the Devil. How are you not freaking out about this?"

But it was as if he wasn't listening to her. He stood some distance away from her with his hands on his hips and his head low. His eyes were moving from side to side as he constructed a plan in his head.

"Screw this," she grabbed her jacket off the chair pulling it to the ground.

John threw his arm out in front of her before she could leave the room. She was right, he told her. "But I'm right too."

Stacy rolled her eyes to the heavens. "How?"

"It's like from your movies you mentioned," he stepped away and thought out loud. "If we change something that seems insignificant, it might be enough to change the whole future."

Stacy sighed heavily as his logic started to make some sense. "Fine," she reluctantly agreed with him again. "We'll play it your way... for now. But if you find yourself facing that demon in a hospital gown, you'll know what the future holds."

OoooO

Stacy looked towards Cas. "You know, if you had to tell them about Raphael, it would have saved me on the gas money."

Cas was still leaning on the wall. "I thought they'd believe it more if it came from you."

Dean watched her smile fade and her eyes drop. She was Raphael's true vessel? He wondered how her mother hid her from him. He wondered how she had kept this a secret for so long. "So what makes you so special?" he asked with a tired voice.

"Maybe it's because I'm part Irish. You know how everyone wants to be Irish," she gave him a wide smile but her eyes told a different story. "All I know is that he's been following me around like I'm a Pussycat Doll," her eyes narrowed. "I just wish I knew how to turn off the music," she gave a sad smile.

Sam pulled out a sheet of paper from John's journal. "Do you recognise this?" It was covered with symbols which Stacy immediately recognised. John had written it after she had told him all the things she saw in the future.

"I don't know what it means though," she apologised. John didn't speak about the events of that night with her again. She assumed he wanted to forget about it as much as she did.

"At the bottom of it," he pointed out to her, "it mentions A.S. We think it means Annabel Stone. Do you still have your mother's journel? Maybe there could be something in it," he asked.

She breathed in deeply and looked to Bobby.

"I know about the protection spell," he nodded. "And I know you've removed it before."

"I have," she replied but she's only ever removed it for John.

Jo's eyes eagerly scattered between everyone. "You know spells? As in from memory?" Ellen shushed her daughter by calling her by her full name.

Stacy turned to her bag and pulled out a brown leather bound journal that had symbols etched into its cover. She rubbed her fingers over it, undecided as to what to do. Her father's journal had been destroyed after it fell into the wrong hands and she was cautious of letting others see this one.

"It's very important that we see it," Sam said as if she didn't know already.

"You can always limit who sees it," Bobby informed her. "To just the people at the table or even just let me and Sam view it."

She nodded and bit her bottom lip. "There's another spell on it," she disclosed before doing anything, "where angels and demons can only see blank pages," she looked over at Cas. "I don't know how to remove that one." He nodded in reply. Stacy then placed the palm of her hand over the journal and closed her eyes. She mumbled something under her breath then pushed it over to Sam. "If you break it, you pay for it." She wasn't joking.


	10. The Small Print: Chapter 3

**The Small Print**

**Part 3**

The night was cold and crispy. Remains of dead stars still glistened brightly in the sky. Stacy sat on the hood of a disused car and dug her heels into its rusted bumper. She stretched her head back twisting it from side to side. Her whole body cracked in the silence. She closed her eyes for a few moments and thought about leaving. She knew every second she was there was becoming more and more unsafe.

"Full moon tonight," a voice appeared around the back of the car.

"Yeah," she didn't look behind instead she looked back up at the sky again. "It's a perfect night for hunting," she joked. She watched her breath dance in the frosty air as Dean leaned against the hood of the car she was on.

"So... how's has the ghost busting business these days?" he asked after a few moments of silence. He dug his hands into his pockets.

"Slow, thank God!" she turned her head to at him and smiled affectionately. "It's good to see you again."

He looked her up and down and raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, you too."

She leaned her head back and closed her eyes again. "Easy cowboy!"

"So," Dean started after a few minutes of pleasantries. He kicked the dirt out from under his boot. "John was your godfather. Does that mean… we're related?"

"No," she shook her head franticly. "God, no! I think I would have said something after our poltergeist experience."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, I can go back to having those dirty dreams then," he smirked.

She quickly raised her head and kicked him on the elbow causing him to jerk it back. She laughed and shook the unwanted image out of her head. Remembering what happened in that house was bad enough but the last thing she wanted to hear was that he was having dreams about her. "That night you guys told me your surnames, my jaw nearly dropped through the floor," she said remembering back. She never in her wildest dreams thought she would meet John's boys so far ahead of the Apocalypse. She brought her jaw forward causing it to crack. It always seemed to crack louder at night and she wondered if it was as noticeable to others as it seemed in her head. But Dean didn't seem to be aware of it.

"But I can't believe your dad never spoke about me. I mean... how could he not?" she breathed on her nails and polished them in her coat.

Dean laughed at her cockiness. She was still the same as when they first met. Always wanting the last word no matter who was speaking. "Bobby _did_ say dad was smitten with your mother."

She smiled. "Yeah... his eyes always lit up whenever she walked into the room... like puppy love," she thought back. "It would have been cute if she weren't married to my dad!"

She lifted her feet and slid down the hood to join Dean. Her heavy sigh told him she was hiding something and he asked her what it was. "You know what the funniest thing is about this whole angel crap," her eyes twinkled in the moon light when she looked at him. "When I was about four years old, I used to have an imaginary friend called Ralph."

"No way," he laughed. "Are you serious?"

She nodded. "And I never understood why mom hated me talking about him." She thought back to one morning at the breakfast table. She gave out to her father for sitting in Ralph's seat. Her mother grabbed her by the arm and told her she was too old to have imaginary friends and she never wanted to hear that name said again.

"Do you think your parents knew all that time?" Dean asked. "Do you think that's what spooked them into telling you the truth about demons?"

She narrowed her eyes. She never thought about it before. Raphael did say Annabel hid her from him, but for how long? Did the time line fit?

Dean thought about the time line too. He remembered her saying she had three hunting partners before going rogue. Her mother was the first, a friend was second and a boyfriend was third. Was John the second?

"You say it like it was an equal partnership," she shrugged a laugh and let her head fall to the side. He had so many ideas and plans for her. He wanted to train her so that she could eventually go on hunts with him and his sons. "He trained you two like… soldiers. I wasn't brought up like that. So, when he gave an order, it was easy for me to say no."

Dean's jaw dropped a little and his eyes widened. Disobeying a direct order was never an option when he was growing up. She noted his surprise and told him of a vein in John's right temple that always looked like it was going to explode. Her smile slipped. "Of course, when it did," she swallowed hard, "he was a different man."

She remembered one of the last cases they worked on together. They were running out of options with a demon and John suggested that she be the bait. After saying no many times, he erupted and she squirmed when he drew back his hand to slap her. She took down her arm when nothing happened and noticed a look in his eyes. Something she hadn't seen since he helped her torch her parents. Regret and fear but most of all, she saw love.

She looked back up to the sky and smiled. "What is it about you and John? You're the only two who could get the truth out of me."

Dean flashed a blinding smile. "Maybe it's our ravishing good looks!"

Stacy threw her head back with laughter. "No, I don't think that's it."

He opened his jacket and pointed down at his chest. "Are you saying this isn't sexy?"

"Ah now, hang on," Stacy waved her hand and laughed. "If I say yes to that, it means I was attracted to your dad as well and then it just gets creepy."

OoooO

The curtains of the house window rustled slightly. Jo stepped away and let them fall in front of her face. "I thought you said you only met her once," she was suspicious from the moment she saw her interact with Dean and Sam. It wasn't the kind of friendship you get after one case, she thought.

Sam looked up from his notes. "Huh? Oh, yeah," he replied assuming she was talking about Stacy. "About three years ago on February twelfth," he looked back down to his books still trying to decipher the code in front of him. Every time he blinked a new problem arouse. He knew he was going to have another sleepless night.

"You remember the date?" she turned to him and narrowed her eyes.

"Uh yeah, it was important to the case," he shrugged, taking little notice of her.

Jo slowly stepped towards the desk Sam was sitting behind. "Did something… happen between her and Dean?" she asked slyly picking up a pencil and twirling it in her fingers. She wanted to know everything but tried not to sound too forward.

Sam put his pen down and pulled his hand through his hair. "Yeah, but there was a spell on them at the time, so I don't think it counts. Why? What's with all the questions?"

"No reason," she shrugged.

"Are you jealous?" he smiled noting her trepidation of their relationship. They told her they worked a case for two days, yet they acted like they were best friends for two years. Them being more than just friends seemed easier to understand.

"No, of course not," she shot the idea down. "I just... don't know if I trust her is all."

He could see why she was suspicious but he began writing again. "Don't worry, Jo. She saved Dean's life. She's one of the good guys."

OoooO

Grey clouds began to dance across the smiling moon but still the air was cold. "You should have told me about Michael," Dean said after their fun had stopped.

"You weren't ready to know," she shook her hair away from her face. "Hell, I wasn't ready to know. I was seventeen for Christ sake. Just when I thought my life couldn't suck anymore, I was given a shitty ultimatum."

He pouted. "Still, you should have told me."

"And what would you have said if I did?" she shot back. "Do you remember your first thoughts were when you heard about the existence of angels? Because I sure as hell remember mine and I certainly wasn't prepared to be the loo-la to tell you there were real."

He was silent for a few moments. "Do you know what dad last told me just before he died?" his voice began to rise and crack under the pressure. "He said I might have to kill Sammy."

Stacy shot a look at him. She couldn't believe John would say that. She couldn't believe he would intestinally put that much pressure on his eldest son. That wasn't what they agreed upon.

"And then you came along telling me the Devil was looking for revenge, random strangers were coming up to us saying Sam was destined to be evil and while you were off playing tea parties, Sam was having me promise to pull the trigger if horns started to appear."

"Hey," she yelled back. "It's not like I was just sitting around putting French plaits in my hair. I had my own hell to go through and my own demons to deal with. The world doesn't stop moving once you leave the room!"

They both sighed heavily allowing their bodies to release the anger that had suddenly built up inside them. Stacy pulled the collar of her jacket up around her neck. It was nights like these that she missed using her long hair as a scarf. She dug her hands deep in her pockets to try to get warm.

"You're right though, I shouldn't have been so cryptic," she said by way of an apology and shook her head. "And if I had known what John told you, I probably wouldn't have said anything at all. But..." she thought about her words carefully before she spoke. "John wasn't supposed to die that night. He was supposed to kill the demon and leave the hospital with the Colt. I thought that… if he could change his destiny so much, maybe my words would cause a ripple effect to change ours."

Dean shook his head. "If angels can't change our destiny, how do you expect mere mortals to?"

She twisted her tongue in her mouth and sucked some cool air in making a hissing noise. "Do you really believe we're mere?"

Silence became their third companion and hovered between them again. "You're not hiding anything else from us, are you? I mean you've no other surprises."

She looked over at him and saw hope in his eyes. She did have one secret but she wasn't ready to reveal it just yet. The last thing she wanted to do was to cause him any more grief. She shook her head. "Nope, nothing worth mentioning," she gave have a smile.

He nodded thankfully.

"Still, I don't know how you do it," he brought his shoulders up to his ears and narrowed his brow. "I have Sammy to back me up but you have no one. Do you ever think of saying yes?"

"Hell yeah," she said louder than she expected. "Raphael has a beautiful habit of turning up at the death of a friend with promises that I don't even know if he can keep. They are tempting though," she trailed off. "To be honest, I was taking my cue from you guys," she swung her head around. "If you guys caved in, there was no point in me saying no again."

He asked her how she could possibly trust people she hadn't met before. "I trusted John," she shrugged. "That was good enough for me."

"Still," Dean watched her think of all the people she could have saved. "I remember what I was like when I was seventeen and if I was told I was going to be a part of the Apocalypse after my parents' death, I don't think I'd be so strong."

She gave him a shoulder of affection, with-holding her one moment of weakness which involved an unsuccessful suicide attempt just after her parents died. It was how John became her in case of emergency contact.


	11. The Small Print: Chapter 4

**AN: **And now for a bit of Sam.

**The Small Print**

**Part 4**

He felt a tapping on his shoulder and he woke with a fright.

"What's wrong?" his head shot up from the desk he had fallen asleep at. He wiped the spit away from the corner of his mouth as he strained his eyes in the darkness.

Stacy shushed him with her finger and motioned him to follow her outside. He duly complied and left the room quietly roughly rubbing his eyes awake. The night was slowly starting to brighten up but there was still a cold wind.

"Sit," Stacy pointed to two chairs waiting for them on the veranda.

"What's going on?" he sat down and took the cup of coffee she handed him.

"It's a ritual my brother and I had," she sat down beside him and pulled a quilt over their legs. "We'd watch the sunrise after a case to remind ourselves there are still nice things in the world." She sighed as the hot coffee slid down her throat.

"I didn't know you have a brother," Sam took a mouthful too.

She nodded. "Five years older than me. When we were growing up, dad taught him everything he knew and mum taught me everything she knew," Stacy smiled. "They even enticed us to go to college... probably to give us the choice of having something normal in our lives," she shrugged, "or maybe it was to see if we'd choose to go into the hunting business on our own merit." She gave a small laugh. "I was going to show the world of demons through art and Chris went into medicine."

The horizon was starting to turn orange and Sam asked where he was now.

She took another mouthful. "First year of med school," she began, "he was driving home from a thirty six hour shift and closed his eyes through a red light... he never woke up."

Sam apologised for asking but she just smiled and shrugged. She never liked talking about her brother and even when she did, it was only short mention that way she didn't have to think about how much she missed him.

"Stac?" he wet his lips to begin with.

"No," she shook her head and stopped him. "Whenever John started a conversation like that it always fecked up my life somehow. Don't get me wrong, I like you guys but Jesus Christ, a girl can only take so much!" She breathed in the icy cold air. "Can't we just sit here and watch this crappy sunrise and listen to the oblivious birds sing their songs and just... pretend?" Her eyes danced over the cars finally resting on Sam. "Can't we just pretend that everything is normal in the world?"

He wanted to tell her about his life since they last met. All their cases. All their hardships. He wanted to tell her about all the times he nearly gave up. He wondered if she had seen any of it from her glimpse of the future and in a small way he hoped she hadn't. Instead, he watched her close her eyes as the warm sun greeted their faces.

He looked up and saw the purple blue night melt into the orange yellow sun. He closed his eyes too and breathed in the fresh crisp air. It was a new dawn and hopefully the start of a good day.

OoooO

Dean rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and cracked his neck as he sat up in the old couch. "Remind me again why the girls got the beds?"

"Because you're supposed to be a gentleman," Bobby passed him handing him a cup of hot coffee.

Dean cracked his neck in the other direction and sipped the brown thick liquid. Jo appeared from the hall and stepped over to the journal on the kitchen table. It was still open. She tilted her head around to read it and went to turn a page, but the journal closed before she got near it and the clasp fastened itself. She yelped as she pulled her fingers away in time. She put her hands on her hips and angrily turned to the room. "I thought she removed the protective spell."

Dean rubbed his face with his hand and shrugged. "I don't know, Jo. You'll just have to ask her yourself."

Stacy opened the door speaking to her friend behind her. "Really? How come I never noticed it before?"

Sam shrugged as he stepped into the warm house after her. "Well, if you didn't know what to look for, it's hard to spot."

Jo stopped Stacy from walking into the kitchen. She shoved the journal into her chest. "It won't open for me. I thought you lifted the protection spell."

"I did," Stacy replied slightly confused with the question. "But I limited it to Sam and Bobby."

"Can Dean open it?"

"Do you want Dean to open it?"

"Don't you trust us?" Jo asked still holding the journal. Her hand was on her hip and her head was tilted to the side.

"I only just met you yesterday!" Stacy glanced around the shocked room. "Did I miss something here?"

Jo pushed the journal at her again. "You know what you are? You know all these spells... so you have to be a witch!"

Stacy was getting tired of the conversation. "Are you drunk?" she smirked. "Have you started drinking without me? At least give me a chance to catch up."

But Jo grabbed a plate and threw it against the wall. Dean and Bobby swiftly stepped into the kitchen to stop anything before it started. "This has nothing to do with drink!" she spat and suddenly stopped.

Stacy's eyes were suddenly drawn to the black blood seeping out of Jo's nostrils. Jo quickly covered her nose with her shaking fingers. Her knees buckled and she fell backwards. Dean caught her just before her head hit the floor.

"Take her up to the bedroom," Bobby shouted.

Sam helped his brother carry the small blonde into the room and onto the single bed. Ellen called out to her daughter and pushed Sam out of the way to get closer to her.

"What did you do?" Dean yelled at Stacy, wiping the blood from Jo's face.

"I didn't do anything. I'm not a witch," she yelled back.

"He's not saying you are," Sam put his hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down.

"I've a medicine box in the kitchen," Bobby declared. "Come help me," he moved between Dean and Stacy to break the tension. Stacy nodded and followed him out of the room. She followed him down the stairs and through the hall. She only stopped when he stopped. She moved around him to see what he was seeing and her jaw dropped.

"Hello Stacy."

Standing on the border of the kitchen and the living room was a tall dark man in a pin stripped suit. His eyes glistened in the morning sunlight. Stacy's palms became clammy and her heart rate suddenly increased ten fold. "Raphael," his name quietly left her lips. He smiled in reply.

Bobby ran to the other side of the room quickly and lifted the nearest book. He flicked through the pages searching for something. But before he could read anything aloud, Raphael threw him to the back of the room, knocking him to the floor. Stacy screamed at him to stop. Bobby tried to stand back up but his head felt heavy and he fell back down again.

Stacy's whole body shook with fear but she forced herself to control it.

"It's so good to see you again, Stacy. I assume you've had enough time to think about my offer."

She turned to face him and from the corner of her eye she saw Dean rush into the room. He confusingly looked from Stacy to Bobby to Raphael. He then clenched his fists and went to charge at the intruder.

"Dean... no!" Stacy yelled but it was too late.

Raphael raised his hand threw him into the wall. "Dean Winchester?" his head turned and his lips smiled as he suddenly recognised the name.

"Don't hurt him," Stacy pleaded.

Dean's body stuck to the wall and he squirmed under the pressure of the angel's power.

"What did you do to Jo?" Dean whispered through clenched teeth.

"I didn't do anything to her," the angel told him. "Someone put a smell on her to listen in on your conversation and it looks like it had a couple of side effects," he smirked.

"I don't believe you." Dean tried to pull his head away from the wall.

"He's strong," Raphael seemed to like playing with his toy. "I can see why Michael likes him so much." Raphael turned to face her. "I should have known your paths would cross at some point. Have you any more surprises for me, like maybe... Sam Winchester?"

"No, just Jo and her mother," Stacy stared at him and moved her finger behind her back.

OoooO

Sam could hear Dean and Stacy scream from the living room.

"Go see what's going on?" Ellen told him.

"Are you sure you'll be okay," Sam didn't want to leave without checking.

Ellen nodded. "Go! We'll be alright."

Sam nodded and stepped towards the open door. But, before he could leave, it slammed in his face. He pulled at the handle and tried to open it but it wouldn't budge.

"Was it the wind?" Ellen asked.

Sam felt around the door and shook his head. "There's no draught around it. I don't understand." He pressed his ear against the door to try to hear what was going on.

OoooO

Dean yelled as Raphael danced his fingers in the air. "Raphael, stop it now!" Stacy shouted at him unable to move from her position.

"Don't worry," he reminded her, "it's not as painful as say... falling asleep at the wheel."

Stacy adjusted her eyes on him. "You didn't..."

"Don't be ridiculous," Raphael moved his fingers again. "I would never damage a potential vessel on purpose. He fell asleep on his own accord. But I do have to admit, I did enjoy the show."

Stacy tore away from her fear and charged towards Raphael shoving him to the floor and began thumping him in the face. She only got two punches in when she suddenly flew into the air. Her body stuck tightly to the ceiling. She screamed as she tried to pull her head away from the ceiling.

"Vengeful anger," Raphael wiped the blood from his mouth. "I do love that about you," his smile faded. "Chris was supposed to be my temporary vessel if you said no but when he died I had to look outside the family. I've given you many years to say yes, but now I'm tired of playing cat and mouse with you."

Stacy swallowed hard before she spoke. "Namonous Padres alonos," she began through clenched teeth.

Raphael shook his head. "No," he demanded her to stop. "You can't hide from me forever."

"Silantios a la rantidos salactra."

He looked up at her under his eyes, his jaw clenched. "We will meet again."

"A far son a la rantidos salactra."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Any ideas what happens next? No seriously... any ideas, cause I sure don't! ;)


	12. The Small Print: Chapter 5

**Part 5**

Stacy leaned her hands on the sides of the sink and breathed in deeply. She forced herself to look up at the mirror. Starting back at her were eyes carrying small shopping bags and a face that looked like it wanted to rest. She took in a painful breath and slowly raised her top up to reveal black and red bruises down her left side. She hovered her fingers over the bruises whining at the thoughts of their pain. She pulled down the top and opened the mirror cabinet. She slipped her fingers over the tops of bottles pulling out anything that looked like pain relief but the strongest thing she could find was aspirin. She chewed on two tablets and slowly lowered herself to the side of the bath. _Probably__broke__a__rib__or__two_, she thought.

The door knocked and Sam's head peeped around the side. "You alright?" he enquired quietly. He could see that she was in pain but when she raised her head, she put on a strong face.

She nodded. "I fell to the ground a little harder than I would have liked."

"If it makes you feel any better, I figured out dad's code," Sam's smile was so intoxicating, she couldn't help but smile back. He had been working on it non-stop, apart from a few hours sleep and this was the first bit of good news since she arrived.

"Great! I'll be right out," she said in an almost whisper covering her hand over her bruised side.

He went to close the door but opened it again quickly. "Are you sure you're alright? I can get Bobby to…"

"I'm fine," she waved her hand at him brushing him aside. "Just give me a minute." He nodded and closed the door tightly behind him.

She waited for his footsteps to reach the stairs before she tried to stand up but the pain was excruciating. Her bottom lip started to quiver and she bit on it hard to stop. Then a tear fell, followed by another and then another. "No," she ordered herself and covered her mouth. She didn't want anyone to hear her having a weak moment. "Stop it," she warned herself and kept repeating the words until her tears dried up and her lips were still. With all her strength, she raised herself from the bath and stepped out onto the landing.

She carefully tip toed down the hall but as she passed the open bedroom, her foot landed on a creaky floor board. She shot a look into the room. Ellen was leaning over her only daughter, wiping her brow with a damp cloth. "I know you did it," she whispered in her daughter's ear. "I know what you did."

Stacy's eyes narrowed in wonder. She turned and stepped in the doorway wondering what Ellen was talking to Jo about.

"I know you closed the door," Ellen's eyes suddenly met hers. Stacy's mouth dropped and she gulped hard. "Excuse me?" she replied in an almost whisper.

Ellen soaked the cloth in a bowl of water and ringed it dry. "When we were in here earlier, Sam went to go out the door to help you guys and it shut in his face. It was you, wasn't it? You closed the door."

Stacy shook her head. "I don't know what…"

"Don't play games with me, missy," Ellen stared at her straight. "I know who your mother was. I know the kinds of things she could do. When the rest of us needed books, she could rhyme spells off. She taught you everything she knew, didn't she?"

"Yes ma'am," Stacy looked down at her feet. She didn't know where else to look.

"Then did you shut the door?"

"Yes ma'am," she felt like she was a child in the principal's office. Her hands suddenly became clammy.

"Then you can fix my daughter," she concluded.

Stacy raised her head. Her eyes were saddened. "It's not that simple," she tried to explain.

"Then make it simple." Ellen pleaded with her eyes. "Can you make her better?"

Stacy nodded and gulped hard. "I can try," she whispered.

Ellen turned back to her daughter and moved a stray hair away. "Then that's all I ask."

Stacy came down the stairs and slowly stepped into the living room, her hand gently holding her side. She dropped it when the men looked up at her. "So, what have we got?" she asked them and tried to sound happy.

"Never mind us a minute," Dean gave a smirk. "What was that you said to Raphael to make him disappear?"

"Did you like it?" she smiled back when he nodded. "Well, when you're being chased by someone, who I swear is scarier than the Devil, you pick up a few things."

"That's highly unlikely," the monotone voice made her jump.

"Don't you ever knock?" she swore as Castiel appeared just inches from her face. His eyes were dark and worrying. She could tell he was sceptical of her and she tried to shake it away.

"What would I knock on?" he slowly faced her. She pulled her head back and looked to Dean for help with the situation.

"Yeah and he doesn't get sarcasm either," he raised an eyebrow shaking his head.

Bobby asked them both to be serious a moment while Cas explained to the group that it was an Espian spell. "But it's so ancient, I didn't think it still worked on angels, especially on archangels," he turned to her. They all did.

"Then you should widen your horizon a little bit," Stacy gulped hard and tried to make a light of the tense situation. She knew they wanted her to willingly give up the information but she was reluctant to share so easily. "I got it off the internet," she informed them. "Google is an amazing invention. You should try it sometime!" She would have continued further but when Sam said her name her brick wall instantly collapsed and she told the truth. "I found it on the black market," she revealed with a heavy sigh. Bobby groaned and threw his hands up angrily. "It's not dangerous and it only works temporarily on archangels. After a couple of weeks, he finds me again." She looked up at Sam and gave a quick smile. "So, please tell me you found something worthwhile."

He nodded, appreciating her honesty. He placed Annabel's journal on the table and opened it on a particular page. "Each page has a symbol drawn in the corner or along the margin," he pointed to an example of a black square that was drawn within the creases of the page. "Then a letter is underlined to correspond to that symbol."

Dean sat down to study the pages but as soon as his fingers touched them, the journal shut closed. Sam sighed and opened the pages again. Stacy sat down beside Dean and turned the journal about to face them. A black circle corresponded to the letter E, while on another page, a cross corresponded to the letter S. "Sometimes, two letters appeared for the same symbol, like here," he flicked over to the back and they saw that the letters R and T were represented by a dash sign. "It's taken me nearly the whole day to sort out such a short message," he picked up John's cryptic page.

"So are you going to enlighten us, Harry Potter?" Dean asked. "Or do we just have to guess?"

Sam groaned and cocked his head. He had written the translation above each symbol. "It mentions the true vessels of Lucifer, Michael and Raphael saying that Lucifer will rise again and bring the Apocalypse." He read further. "Then with brothers of horses four, will help to seal the Devil's door," he read the end of the verse.

"The four horsemen," Cas wondered. "It must be talking about their rings."

Dean sighed. "Perfect!" He rubbed his hand over his face and pulled out a gold ring that was hanging round his neck. He rolled the circular ring between his fingers and stared at it worryingly.

"Four horsemen?" Stacy tried to remember what she could from Sunday school. "You don't mean famine and death and…" she dropped her head and closed her eyes. "Of course you do." Suddenly, the multitude of the situation hit her. Locking the devil back in his cage wasn't meant to be simple.

"So, we'll track them down and cut off their rings. Who knows?" Bobby sounded optimistic. "We might get lucky."

"Since when the hell has luck ever been on our side?" Dean groaned. He slipped the ring back under his shirt again and stood to his feet. He walked to the far side of the room and ran his hands over the back of his head. Stacy could tell he was trying to formulate a plan.

"I still can't believe dad knew everything," Sam threw the sheet on the table. The whole thing, Stacy's story, John's note, it all seemed so unbelievable. It all seemed like an unending dream.

"He didn't know the whole song," Dean shrugged and looked to Stacy for confirmation. "He just knew a line of the chorus."

Stacy swallowed hard and thought about the note. John knew more than what was written on that piece of paper. He knew more than he ever shared with her. He knew how to lock up the devil. She couldn't remember seeing any of that in her flash forward. She hadn't seen anything that even looked remotely like a key in those few moments of the future. Or maybe she did but she didn't know what she was looking at.

She leaned back in her chair and thought about the other more immediate problem on their hands. "Here… about Jo. I know a healing spell that might help her."

Sam glanced to Dean. "I know you're not a witch," he gently spoke, hoping he wouldn't offend her. "But we've met with witchcraft before..."

"Hey, I'm not working for any demon," she interrupted him. "And I certainly haven't sold my soul to anyone," she reassured him. "It's not like I'm using animal sacrifices." Dean raised an eyebrow. "I've just learned off a couple of words, that's all. And this one I got from my mother." She looked around at the concerned faces. "I know you say Jo's strong but this thing, whatever it is or was, isn't going away any time soon and she's not getting any better." She looked up to Sam. "You'll just have to trust me." She followed his gaze to Dean. "Just trust me," she repeated.

Bobby asked what she had in mind. "The English translation is the Red Dragon. It's an old Irish…"

"Nuh uh, there's no way in hell I'm going to let you do the Red Dragon spell," Bobby interrupted her, immediately recognising the name. "It's one of the most dangerous healing spells out there," he yelled.

"It is very dangerous," Cas agreed. His tone was a lot calmer. "The illness is absorbed by the speaker of the spell."

"I think I know how it works," Stacy nodded. "I can handle it."

"Really?" Sam asked. "Because when you sat down, you had to hold your breath. You probably have a few cracked ribs after that fall."

Stacy stared to the table and bit her bottom lip. He was right. To do the spell the speaker had to be of strong health otherwise they could get seriously hurt and she was already injured. When Raphael disappeared, she fell straight to the floor. Her hands covered her face in time but there was nothing she could do to protect her chest. She hit the ground hard and immediately she heard something crack. "Well, we can't just sit on our asses and paint butterflies. If we don't do something soon she's going to…," she didn't want to finish the sentence.

She looked up to Dean when he opted to recite the spell on her behalf. His eyes were a mixture of fear, anger and sadness. It broke Stacy's heart to see him in such pain.

Bobby placed his hand on the man's shoulder. "I'm sorry, son. This isn't the kind of spell you can just read from a book."

They all waited in silence as they tried to think of another way to help her. "Can't you just... alter it, somehow?" Sam asked the room. They all looked over. "Like you did for the protection spell on your mother's book? Instead of Stacy absorbing the illness, can't something else happen?"

Stacy thought for a few seconds. Then she looked from Cas to Bobby. "Yeah," she nodded. "Something else could happen."


	13. The Small Print: Chapter 6

**AN:** For any fluent Irish speakers out there, I apologise for any mistakes. For any non speakers, the translation is under the spell.

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><p><strong>Part 6<strong>

Bobby turned to see what the commotion was. Castiel had appeared suddenly in front of where Stacy was about to walk. She slapped him hard across the arm and walked to the back of the kitchen. Dipping two fingers into a bowl of fresh animal blood, she quickly drew a symbol on the back door. When she turned around Cas was tight to her face. "Have you told them everything?" he asked.

She looked deep into his eyes and wondered what he meant. Then she realised he knew her dirty little secret and her face dropped. "No," she swallowed hard. "They're not ready to know yet."

"Dean is already angry with you for with-holding the information on Raphael for so long," Cas could feel his thoughts in his head. "Don't you think it would be a good idea to tell him the truth now before he gets any angrier?"

"Stop it!" she shouted and quickly looked over her shoulder. Everyone was too busy to listen to their conversation. "Look," she lowered her voice and moved around him out of their view. "I realise you're his guardian angel but trust me when I say he is not ready to know... this," she looked Cas up and down. "Please Cas, can I trust you not to say anything?" she pleaded with him.

_Maybe __she __was __right_, he thought. When she and Dean first met, he wasn't ready to hear about the existence of angles. Maybe she was right to wait a few years to tell him the rest of it. He reluctantly agreed to hold the truth until the appropriate moment arose. She thanked him with a sigh.

"Good, now do something useful and draw this on that wall," she pushed a book in his chest and pointed to the wall behind him.

"This is a holding spell," he looked at her almost questioning.

"Very good Sherlock," she smiled.

When she walked back into the living room, Sam was helping Ellen to carry Jo into the middle of the room. "Do you really think this will work?" Ellen asked. "I mean, what if Raphael was wrong about it being a demon's spell?"

That thought had already crossed Stacy's mind. She had never heard of a demon putting a listening spell on anyone, but Raphael had never lied to her before. He had bent the truth on occasion but he had never lied.

They laid her flat on her back in the centre of a star shape drawing on the floor and wrapped her tightly in a white bed sheet. Stacy stood on one of the star's points and asked if everyone was ready. Bobby got to his feet and stood on another point. He nodded. So did Ellen and Dean. Sam picked up a large book and opened it at the appropriate page. Cas finished the drawing and stood outside the danger zone in the kitchen.

"Okay," Stacy swallowed hard. "So, whatever you do… don't run."

Sam and Dean looked worryingly at each other and then to Bobby who just shrugged. He was never a witness to this spell, he had only heard second hand stories.

"And don't move from where you're standing, either," Cas informed them. "Or it will escape."

"What will escape?" Dean asked with a deep voice. His eyes were suddenly fearful and he wondered if it was a mistake to trust her.

Stacy tilted her head. "It's better not to ask that."

She faced towards Jo and closed her eyes. She breathed in and out slowly three times before raising her arms slowly, palms up.

Glaoim ar tusa

Dragún Rua na stáinte

Le scaoileadh an leabh seo

Ach gach tinneas agus fulaingím go léir

Mo corp, mo stáinte

Mo íobairt anseo

_(Translation: I call upon thee_

_Red dragon of health_

_To release this child_

_Of all illness and suffering_

_My body, my health_

_My sacrifice here)_

She repeated these words over and over, raising her voice up as a low rumbling was heard in the distance and the floor beneath their feet began to vibrate. They saw Jo squirm in the sheets as if she wanted to be free of something. Then her back arched and a cloud of black smoke escaped her mouth. The cloud swirled in front of them and gathered to make the image of a red skinned dragon.

"What the hell?" was all Dean could think of saying.

The ground underneath their feet began to shake violently making it difficult to stay in one spot. Above them, the lights flickered. The cutlery and cups, Sam had left in the kitchen sink, began to rattle and the books on the shelves began to topple over.

Stacy instructed everyone to raise their hands and face their palms inwards. Drawn on their palms, were miniature scaled versions of the image Cas had helped draw on the walls. The dragon roared and everyone turned their heads away as they felt the heat on their faces.

"My hands are starting to sweat," Ellen said after a few moments and looked around at the others.

Stacy looked at one hand then at the other. The heat was causing the images to sweat away. The dragon didn't like to be held and if the images disappeared it would be coming after her. She quickly looked up to Sam. "Any time now would be good."

Sam nodded and struggled to hold the book up with one hand while holding his other was stretched out. The dragon roared again. Dean looked at his hands. The images didn't make sense any more. Stacy's eyes were drawn up at the mythical creature that was now towering over her. Its green eyes sparked and skin shone under the light. And although it wasn't real, she could almost smell its breath.

Bobby shouted at Sam to hurry up. Sam quickly snapped out of his trance and began reading the vanquishing spell. He read each Latin word as fast as he could but it still wasn't quick enough. The dragon turned itself into the black cloud again and entered Stacy through her mouth. She threw her hands back. Her eyes were wide with pain. In accordance with the spell, she was sacrificing her body and health for Jo. If Sam didn't hurry up, she would be left with the demon's sickness inside her.

OoooO

They watched her take another sip of water.

"I still think you should get checked out by a doctor," Sam was concerned.

After the dragon let her go, she fell to the floor on her hands and knees and started coughing up blood. She thanked him for his concern. "But what am I going to say, that I was beaten up by a fairytale? I'll heal myself."

"Not by calling another dragon, I hope," Dean said.

"No," she smiled, "something simpler this time." She took a sip then placed the glass on the floor between her feet. She rubbed her face with her hands and sighed slightly.

Both brothers shared a look, miming to the other to ask the question first. "So," Sam drew the short straw. "Do you use spells for hunting too?"

She looked at him between her fingers. "Are you asking me if I could have used a spell to find our ghosts?"

He nodded.

She shrugged. "Maybe, but I don't know how. Anyway, I prefer to hold the gun in my hands, you know. It's no fun if you can hunt demons from the comfort of your own couch."

They turned to silence again.

She sighed heavily and leaned back in her chair. She looked down at her fingers. They looked worn and felt rough. "I could help you find the other horsemen, though," she offered. "They can't be that hard to find…" But Dean stopped her, saying it was too dangerous. "As dangerous as inviting an angel and a dragon over for tea?" she smiled.

"Worse!"

Bobby entered the conversation before she could argue with him any further. "Well, the good news is she can't remember anything. Of course, the bad news is… she can't remember anything."

Dean looked up at him. "What does she remember?"

"Her last memory was when I handed the phone to Sam to call Stacy," he replied.

"So, my name triggered the spell?"

"No," Sam thought back. "It was triggered by Annabel's name. Someone must have figured out her journal was needed to solve Dad's message."

They all thought about who would be desperate enough to cast an eavesdropping spell and why they didn't just steal the journal themselves.

"The spell," Stacy said louder than she expected. "Angels and demons can't read the journal." She looked from Dean to Sam. "All they see are blank pages." The three men nodded. "So, do you have any ideas who would do this?" she asked them.

Dean and Sam looked to each other and only thought of one person who would be so devious, Crowley.

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><p><strong>That's story 2 complete. Hope you're at least enjoying it even if you are quiet about it! ;) I don't mind!.<strong>

**Next story is set around season 6 & is hopefully coming soon.**


	14. Voodoo Child: Chapter 1

**A/N:** This new story is set around on Series 6, near the beginning. All the Campbell clan are involved. I only own the OCs.

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><p><strong>Part I<strong>

"Sie ist die erste. The beginning," the old woman declared to the large demonic crowd that had gathered around her. Her large black eyes were the only feature that could be seen through her grey straw matted hair. Her long black cape covered her feet and the box she was standing on. The walled room was cold and dark. Dripping water slid down its walls. Small giggles were heard at the back of the room. Their excitement was becoming too overwhelming for them to control.

"Bring me the boy," she called out.

The crowd parted as two of them brought in the child from the back of the room. Each had a hand on the boy's shoulders. Neither of them spoke as they brought him forward in front of the woman. When they stepped away, their hands left a wet print on his shoulders. The woman stepped off her box and knelt down in front of the frightened boy. She rubbed her index finger along his neck up to his chin.

"And you, my dear, are the new generation."

OoooO

Sam was helping Gwen load up the truck. They had gotten what they had come for and had collected all the information they needed. Suddenly, there was a scream heard from within they house. Mark had been instructed to check the house once more before they left. Gwen shot a look to Sam pleading with him to help. He nodded and grabbed a pistol from his belt and ran through the house in search of him.

He found him curled up in a ball on the floor clutching his arm. A chandelier that was hanging from the ceiling swung at Sam's head and he ducked just in time. Something from the shadows kicked him in the knee and swung his feet out from under him. He flew onto his back letting his gun slide across the floor in the process. The brown haired stranger stood over him and stuck the heel of their boot into his neck. As a gun clicked, the chandelier swung back, illuminating their face.

Sam recognised it immediately and cocked his head. "Stacy?" he whispered, narrowing his eyes in the dim light.

"Sam?" she twisted her head not understanding what she was seeing. "But how is it...?" she lowered her weapon slightly and removed her boot.

Christian ran into the room pointing his gun straight at her. "Don't!" Sam shouted quickly jumping to his feet and pulling her behind him protecting her. "She's with me," he shouted as the bullet rang out.

OoooO

Stacy leaned against the table as Sam spoke to someone behind a partially closed door. She tried to see who it was but could only make out a shoulder. The man was tall, though, and spoke with authority.

The car trip back was long and quiet. Sam had given her some gauze to place over her arm until they got back to safety. She was brought back to an area that was heavily guarded and protected by high electrical fencing. It wasn't somewhere she would call safe but under the circumstances, she had little choice.

She was ordered to sit still until the situation could be brought under control and since she was heavily outnumbered, she quickly obeyed. She tore off the last piece of tape from the roll and stuck it on to her now bandaged arm. The bullet from Christian's gun grazed her left upper arm. It didn't need stitches but the little bit of glue Sam used helped stop the bleeding.

A black haired woman was trying to help the man who she had hurt at the abandoned house. She had dislocated his shoulder. S he heard it pop when she pulled his arm hard behind a door.

"You know you're doing it wrong," Stacy informed her. "It's supposed to be quick and painful, not slow and... more painful."

"I can do it my way just as well," she was told to mind her own business.

"And you're doing an awesome job of it," Stacy smiled. The man who had shot her suddenly appeared from the darkness and was about to confront her when Sam returned from the other room. He was followed by an older gentleman.

Stacy stood to attention as the man extended his hand and introduced himself.

"Campbell?" she repeated narrowing her eyes keeping a hold of his hand. "Have we met before? Why does that name sound familiar?"

Samuel smiled. "You've got a good memory," he let her hand go and explained his relationship to Sam.

She glanced at Sam who was leaning on the table next to her. She then looked to the others and wondered as thought circled around in her head. "So... were you all dead?"

Samuel laughed. "No, no, just me and Sam."

"Oh sure, 'cause that makes perfect sense," she nodded sarcastically. She was standing in front of a man who was dragged to hell a year ago and another man who, by all accounts, had been dead for thirty years. "So, am I getting a beating now?" she looked towards Mark and the woman was still trying, unsuccessfully, to mend him. "I'm guessing they're some relations of yours."

Samuel nodded and introduced each of them to her. They all grunted in response. "Under normal circumstances, I would retaliate for such an attack on them but Sam told me about your previous relationship and I'm willing to let you by this time."

_I__'__m __honoured_, she thought. She looked to Sam who smiled. She gave a smile back but there was something unfamiliar in his eyes. Whether it the fact that he had been possessed by the devil or the fact that he came back from hell in a cell, there was something... different. But his contagious smile made her believe it was just the time they lost that had weakened their friendship.

"Can I ask you why you were at the house then, since we're all friends now?" she turned her attention back to Samuel.

He nodded and told her about the case they were working on. Three families had been murdered with the youngest boy being kidnapped. "The last two boys were found two days later, beaten and their throats cut. Neighbours reported seeing men with shiny faces leaving the houses," he handed her the case files. She flicked through them, each contained newspaper cuttings and pictures of the missing boys. "All the boys have just turned seven. Connor Fields is the latest to go missing. He lived in that house were we all had the pleasure of meeting up in."

She pulled the boy's picture from the file and looked at it the longest. She bit her bottom lip and breathed in the cold damp air.

"The demons are obviously searching for someone in particular. We plan to get to the boy first and yada, yada, yada," he laughed waving his hand through the air.

Stacy narrowed her eyes at him. "I hate to ask what the third yada means."

"Were you there for the same reason?" Sam intervened moving away from the table and standing closer to her.

She agreed that she was also searching for the same missing boys. "Only..." she cleared her throat. Everyone had their eyes on her and she suddenly felt uncomfortable. "The last boy, Connor... is my son," she revealed.

Samuel's jaw dropped and his eyes widened.

Stacy looked up and raised her eyebrow. "I bet you wish you hadn't said that third yada now, huh?"

OoooO

"But I thought you had a miscarriage," Sam was still in shock. He was now sitting across the room from her. Everyone else was dotted around the room. Christian swung back on a chair blocking her only line of escape like he had read her mind when she spoke about her son. She felt trapped but she tried not to let it show.

"Miscarriage, adoption," she raised each shoulder to each word like their meanings were the same. She entwined her fingers and cracked her knuckles. "Either way, it was a closed adoption so I didn't know where he was until recently."

Christian asked her why she gave him up in the first place.

"I was protecting him from the angels," she looked around at a room of blank faces. "Sam didn't tell you?" she smacked her tongue off her teeth. "Yeah, I'm Raphael's true vessel. Found out when I was seventeen and my childhood flew out the window."

The room fell silent as the new information sank in. She looked around the room as every one of them avoided her stare. She noticed Samuel look at his grandson. She didn't have the courage to see where Sam was looking.

She smiled and dropped her head. "You know, I've met hunters before that don't much care for me but to be in a room where everyone wants a piece of you is such a rarity and although I'm honoured..." she began. Sam finished. "It's not like that."

"Sam, even a blind man can see what you can't and the fact that you guys want a piece of my son as well. It's a privilege!" she placed her hand on her chest sarcastically.

"We're not going to hurt him," Gwen told her.

"No, of course not," Stacy nodded at her. "You just want to yada him."

"We only wanted to see if the rumours were true," Christian sharpened two knives together, although she wondered if he really wanted to sharpen them on bone instead. She asked what kind of rumours. "The ones that say he's the son of the devil."

She shot a look of disgust to Samuel. "Don't you think I'd know if I did the dirty with Lucifer? Let's just leave that one as just a rumour, shall we?"

Mark ground his teeth and held his shoulder as he moved in his chair. Gwen had tried to fix his shoulder with little success. Instead, she put it in a sling, thinking it was just a broken bone.

"Oh, for heaven sake," Stacy mumbled and stepped behind him. She put her right hand on his shoulder and pulled his left arm back hard. Mark screamed a swear at her as Christian and Gwen pushed her out of the way. They all heard the shoulder popping back into place.

Stacy was shoved back to the wall. "I was just trying to help. God only knows why?"

Gwen didn't believe her and a fight ensued. Sam and Samuel had to intervene and pull them apart. "Enough," Samuel called order. Stacy held out her hand and pointed her fingers straight like she was about to cast something horrid. But Sam grabbed her hand and pushed it down to her side.

She looked up at him and shook her head. "What they hell are you doing with these guys, Sam? And, where the hell is Dean?"

OoooO

She shook her head in disbelief. "But he's more of a hunter than us two put together." She couldn't believe that he had taken a clean break from hunting. She wondered how he could just walk away without looking back and figured it must have been one of Sam's wishes before he said yes.

Sam nodded. "Well, he has it good now." He thought back to that one night where he saw Dean and Lisa having dinner through the window. "He's happy," his eyes dropped sadly.

_Good __for __him_, she thought and smiled at Sam hoping to comfort him a little.

Samuel came into the room with Christian strolling behind them. "I think that's that most Mark has ever said to a stranger. It usually takes him a while to open up to new people," he tried to laugh of the tension. "They're usually not like that. We're usually a friendly bunch."

Stacy wasn't buying it and didn't want to listen to any more. She stood to leave.

"Wait," Samuel placed his hand on her arm and pulled her back. He let go quickly when she shot him an angry look. "Let us help you."

But she politely turned him down. "The only thing I want from you is to leave this case and my son alone." She looked back at Sam. "It's great seeing you again, Sam. And if you ever figure out what kind of voodoo brought you back from hell, give me a call."

Christian puffed out a laugh. She asked what his problem was. "Voodoo! Is that what you witches are calling it these days?" She looked to Sam with sad eyes and quietly left the room.

Sam caught her just before she got into her car. "I can't believe you told them," she spat yanking her arm away from him.

"I didn't say anything. They've heard the stories before. They must have put two and two together," he explained. "Anyway, he was just joking," he smiled and placed his hand on her car door closing it shut.

"No, he wasn't Sam," she put her hand over his. "I've met guys like him all my life. They think I'd be a powerful asset if I were an ally."

He shook his head. "They don't think like that. I didn't think that."

But she knew his eyes told a different story. The Sam she once knew had changed somehow. The light in his eyes was dull. They both turned as Samuel appeared and leaned on the doorway. "And his eyes nearly popped out of his head wondering what colour rabbit I was going to pull out," she whispered looking down from his head to his feet.

"Yeah," Sam smiled, his eyes glistening. "What _was_ that about?"

She gave a weak smile back. "I guess you'll just have to use your imagination." She pulled his hand away as he pleaded again with her to stay a little longer. But she silently refused and got into the car.

As security opened the iron gates, allowing her to drive away, Sam walked back inside. "Why'd you let her go?" Samuel mumbled. "You do realise we need her."

"Don't worry," he informed his grandfather as he passed him. "I know where she's going."

OoooO

She reached her hand up and pushed the small button at the side of the door. She heard muffled voices within the house and some foot steps. The door swung open.

"What the hell?" was the greeting she was met with.

"Evening Dean," she smiled. "I hear you've adopted a family."


	15. Voodoo Child: Chapter 2

**AN:**Sorry about the delay

**Part II**

She was telling them of how she celebrated her fourteenth birthday at a bowling arcade. Her brother had picked up a ball that was meant to be held by someone with more slender fingers. When he threw the ball, his whole body followed and he went sliding down the lane. Ben snorted with the laughter. "It was almost as funny as that," she pointed at him and they all errupted in laughter. Her meeting with Dean had gone a lot more smoothly than with his brother. Although, the situation was different their friendship slipped back to the way it was. It was like no time had lapsed between them and everything came natural.

Lisa tapped the face of her watch how late the time was and told Ben he should start getting ready for bed. Stacy's chair squeaked as she stood up. "I should go too." But Lisa told her to stay longer. "There's beer in the fridge."

Stacy watched them go up the stairs and sighed. "I'm jeolous," she told him as he headed for the fridge.

"Ah don't worry," he smirked. "There's plenty of women out there who'd be glad to be with you."

She gasped and threw her beer cap at him. He ducked out of the way and picked it up when it landed on the floor.

"Hey, I didn't know you had a brother," he threw his beer cap in the sink. She suddenly remembered she had only told Sam about her brother and she suddenly became nervous. The last thing she wanted to do was to talk about him and how he died.

"I also didn't tell you about the Griffin that had set up shop in the bowling arcade. We had the place to ourselves that night," she smiled at the memory and hoped Dean wouldn't ask anything further.

He sat down across from her. "So, I guess you saw Sammy otherwise you wouldn't know I was here," he wrapped his mouth around the opening of the bottle and threw it back.

She raised her eyes brows. "And the whole family. You know I appreciated it when you called to tell me he died, but you could have at least told me he was alive as well."

"Hey, I only found out recently myself," he leaned back in his chair. Stacy wondered why his brother would keep such a secret from him, but then she noticed Ben's report card on the fridge and realised he wanted Dean to be happy.

"And Samuel," she tried to lighten the mood. "If he wasn't your grandfather..." she rubbed her thumb down the neck of the bottle. "So, what have you been working at lately?"

"Don't change the subject like that. What did Samuel do to you?" he leaned over the table with a concerned look in his eyes. "Did he hurt you?"

"Nah," she smiled. "He just hurt my feelings, is all," she took another mouthful.

There was silence for a few moments then Dean asked her what she was really doing at his house. "Can't a girl just visit a friend with no reason behind it?" she was slightly hurt that he had to ask.

"Of course!" he leaned forward, placing his elbows on the kitchen table. "But with you Stacy, there's always another story. So what's the case?"

She raised her shoulder and leaned her neck back, defensively. "I'm not going to tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because Dean, you're out. You've been out a whole year and I'm certainly not going to be the one to bring you back in. Sam would kill me. He already know's I'm here. He practically drew me directions you your house." She breathed in deeply. "Mind you, he didn't tell me about the freaky gnomes in the front lawn. Nice touch, by the way." He told her to shut up. "Report cards on the fridge, golf clubs in the hall, raked leaves in the garden but gnomes… dude, who are you?" He told her to shut up again and they shared a laugh.

"So if you're not going to tell me as a hunter," his voice became low to a near whisper, "tell me as a friend." She began pulling off the label of her beer bottle. This situation seemed all too familiar. "What are you keeping from me?"

She sighed a smile and rolled her tongue over her teeth. She finished off her bottle and tapped her ring on its side. "I need to stop drinking these."

OoooO

"How can you be sure they're looking for your son?" he opened another two bottle.

She raised her shoulder. "Both families used the same adoption organisation, 'Little Children'. If they weren't looking for him, it's hugely coincedental."

Dean asked her was Connor born with any special abilities like hers.

"He's not an x-man!" she spat. "He's just a normal boy."

But when he asked how she could possible know that, her leg began to twitch. "I went to see him after the danger of the Apocolopse was over. I wanted to see if he was okay." Her mind went back to they day she watched him playing in a public playground with his friends and his adoptive parents. "He's normal and if he's not... we'll find out in two days," she filled her mouth with water, held it for a second then swallowed.

"I shouldn't have gone to see him. It was a mistake to look for him," she dropped her head in shame.

"It was your motherly instinct," Lisa appeared at the doorway. Stacy jumped from her chair and awkwardly noted the time. "I should get going."

"No, don't," Lisa stopped her and apologised for listening to the end of the conversaition. "I thought you were just an old girlfriend of Dean's. I didn't realised you're a hunter as well."

Stacy smiled and sat when she sat. "I suprise myselft sometimes," she joked.

"Do you think you were followed?" Lisa asked and sat down at the table with them. But Dean shook his head. "If you were followed, they'd know which boy to take." He then asked Stacy had she done anything different since their last meeting at Bobbys a year ago.

"Oh you know," she looked down at her hand, "this and that." She looked up at Lisa, cleared her throat then looked to Dean. "Oh, right. Got ya," he nodded understanding her completely.

Lisa didn't. "What?" she asked wanting to know more.

Stacy didn't mind telling her. "But you have to live here," she told Dean.

He cleared his throat before telling his partner that Stacy knew 'some spells'.

"As in witchcraft?" Lisa asked wide eyes. She didn't like the thought of witchcraft in her house especially around her son.

"No," Dean defended his friend. "It's not like an episode of Bewitched."

"Well actually," Stacy squirmed, "that's not entirely true anymore." They both looked at her. "It started about a year ago, just before you called me to tell me about Sam. It came all of a sudden and hasn't gone away since. Hunting's a lot easier now. You should see what happens when I click my fingers," she smiled at Lisa but quickly removed it when she saw the familiar fear in her eyes.

Dean asked did anyone else know. "No, I haven't told..." she bit her lip in thought. "When I was at Sam's there was... a difference of opinion," she put it politely. "I stuck out my hand and was about to open a firework display. If Samuel's clever enough, he'll figure out that I'm a lot stronger than Sam remembers."

Dean shook his head. "But Samuel didn't take Connor," he narrowed his eyes when she looked away. "You don't seriously think he took him, do you?"

She rolled her shoulders. "I don't know, Dean. The guy freaks me out and not in a good way."

Lisa touched her hand. "You were at his place, you would have seen something," she said softly putting Stacy at ease instantly.

Dean wanted to help her find her son. "Just with the research part not with the hunting," he concluded.

Both women exchanged a look. Stacy instantly knew what the other woman was thinking. Lisa knew leaving the hunting business wasn't going to be easy and she didn't like the fact that one girl could come in a change everything that they had together. Stacy could feel that fear and promised herself she would make sure Dean wouldn't go back.

Dean took a sup of beer completely oblivious to what was happening in front of him. "Do you think Raphael know you were going to get stronger?"

Stacy hadn't thought about it. "Could you imagine? It'd be like Hudini on a sugar high."


	16. Voodoo Child: Chapter 3

**AN: **Second section is a flashback

**Part III**

There had been two other cases in the past two years concerning 'Little Children's Adoption' agency. Both boys had celebrated their birthdays on June fourteenth and both were found two days later with bruises and their throats cut. The boys were abducted late at night and their families were found in their bedrooms with their throats slit.

"Remember the protection spell on my mom's journal?" He nodded as she spoke. "I put a similar one on Connor when he was born."

"So, he can't die?" he wondered.

She shook her head and laughed. "Of course he can die. It just can't be intentional."

_That __was __why __the __boys __were __tortured __before __their __throats __were __slit_, Dean thought. They were checking for a protection spell first. He was about to ask how they could possibly know that she'd protect him with a spell when she interrupted him. "Can I ask you something?"

"What's that?" he didn't look up from his page. He was careful not to lose his place on the notes she had given him on the case.

"How are you not freaking out?" His head rose as she continued. "I mean, that look I saw in Lisa's eyes is the same look I see in everyone else's. Hell, most days I can't bring myself to look in the mirror. But you..." she shook her head in disbelief. "What's your excuse?"

He gave a heavy sigh and leaned back in his chair. Licking his lips, he made her wait for a response. "I guess it's because the last time I freaked out over someone with special abilities, I nearly lost them," he paused thinking about his brother. "Anyway, the last time you told me about knowing spells you asked me to trust you," he tilted his head. "It worked out well then, so I'm going to trust you again."

"Aw Dean," she forced a frown. "I'm touched."

"Don't be so sarcastic," he groaned. "I'm pouring my heart out here."

Her phone rang and she leaned over to answer it. "No seriously, thanks Dean. You're practically the only friend I've got right now." She answered the phone with a smile. "Hi Harry."

Dean had heard that name before but he couldn't put his finger on where. He tried listening to the sound of his voice but only heard one side of the conversation.

"Really?" she sounded surprised. She reached in her bag and pulled out a map of the area. She began to unfold it. "Give me those numbers again." She put the phone on the table and pressed the speaker button. She ran her finger down the map and then another finger across at the appropriate longitude and latitude numbers. When they met at a point, she grabbed a pen and drew a circle.

"Are you sure?" she scrunched up her nose. "'Cause I don't see anything there."

"Have I ever put you wrong?" the voice replied.

"There's always a first time," she mumbled.

"I heard that," the stranger said with a smile in his voice. She thanked him and hung up.

"Harry?" Dean thought aloud and the name suddenly dawned on him. "As in... Harry from the diner on our first case?"

She nodded. "Let's just say a pack of werewolves wanted my autograph and Harry was holding the pen."

OoooO

For three days, the pack of four was following her trail. When she finally figured out a way to hide her scent, she thought she was free. However, she didn't count on running into Harry Myles who was visiting his sister at the time. He was wearing the scarf she had given him as a parting gift. Her epithelials were all over it. She reached him just in time and was surprised at his reaction.

"Why were they after me?" he asked.

"They weren't. They were after me," she cleaned her bloody knife in the scarf. Well, what was left of it.

"I knew you weren't a waitress," he remarked as she handed him back the torn scarf. "You could barely count your tips." She huffed out a laugh and went to walk away, but he started following her and asking her questions. And the less she said, the more intrigued he became about her secret life.

"You know you'll have to answer me sometime," he stood with his hands on his hips like an angry child.

She licked her teeth as she thought. "There are more dangerous things in this world than werewolves," she began. "And things you thought were safe are actually the scariest of all."

OoooO

"And now he's a hunter?" Dean was shocked after she told her story.

"No, no," she reassured him. "He's more like a 'go to' guy. Not as knowledgeable as Bobby but he gets the job done."

She was still stretched over the map searching the quickest route to the circled area. Dean leaned forward too and asked where they were headed. But she pulled the map out of his sight. "Nuh, uh," she began folding it up. "I promised Lisa I'd only let you help me with the research."

Dean said he couldn't remember that promise being made. "It was an unspoken promise," she smiled and packed up her things quickly. "It was great seeing you again," she said and gave him a kiss on the top of his head before running out the door. Dean held the door open and watched her speed down south. He then closed the door and wondered where Lisa kept the maps.

OoooO

Stopping at a junction, she dipped her headlights. She picked up the map again and turned it around. She could hear John laughing in the seat beside her.

"I have to see which direction I'm facing," she always told him.

"And they say men are terrible with directions," he always laughed.

She threw the map onto his invisible lap and turned left, then took a right passing a broken wooden gate. She kept driving until there was no road left. A large shed stood in the middle of a field. She stepped out of the car and carefully looked around her before grabbing a 45 from the boot and headed for the building. The shed was made of sheets of metal badly tied together. It had no windows and after circling it, only one door. Apart from an old tractor and rusting saws, the inside was practically empty.

Stacy pulled out a small flash light and shone it in front of her as she stepped into the darkness. Her feet crunched over the dry hay that was scattered on the ground. A hollow noise made her stop and look to her feet. She tapped the heel of her shoe in front and behind her and recognised the different sounds. Using her hands, she pulled away the straw to reveal a handle to a trap door. Pulling it open, she carefully dropped herself down the steps into the hole.

The metal constructed tunnel in front of her split into two directions. On instincts, she took the left side. The walls were slimy and a thin film of water lay under her feet. The light she was following slowly dimmed and disappeared. She faced the flashlight towards her and tapped her hand against its side hoping to wake the batteries, but they were dead. "Well, that's always a good sign," she whispered.

Her heart rate increased when looking down both directions, she couldn't see anything.

A slight noise behind her caught her ear and she swung around to face it. "Hello?" she whispered. Then something brushed passed her and she heard a faint laughter in front of her. "Connor?" she let her voice roll down the corridor. Again she heard laughter, but it seemed to be moving away from her. She closed her eyes and while taking a deep breath, she cocked her gun and positioned it in front of her. She scratched her nails along the metal walls, forming a ball of white light. She then threw it to the ground in front of her, forcing the darkness to disappear.


	17. Voodoo Child: Chapter 4

**AN:**Some mentions of violence towards a child.

* * *

><p><strong>Part IV<strong>

She found him sitting on the floor of a small room, his knees tight up under his chin. His face was covered with dirt and his feet were vacant of shoes. He was still in his pyjamas. She bent down to him and held her hand out to him.

"It's okay," she smiled when he flinched. The last time someone held their hand out to him, it was painful and he was frightened it might happen again. "I'm a friend of your parents," she told him. "I'm here to help you."

He slowly raised his eyes to hers. She was different to the others. Her smile was real. With as much strength as possible, he got to his feet and slowly stepped towards her. She knelt down on the floor to be at his eye level. She gently rubbed her hands over his head and body, checking for cuts or bruises. She asked him if he was hurt but he shook his head. She smiled again even though she knew he was lying. She could see finger marks on the back of his neck and on both shoulders like he was tightly held down by someone.

She took a handkerchief out of her pocket and folded it lengthways. "You may see a couple of scary things so I'm going to put this over your eyes, okay? I don't want you to be frightened. Can you be a brave boy for me?"

He nodded and let her tie it over his eyes. "Now, I want you to hold onto my neck as tightly as you can and don't let go, no matter what you hear, okay?"

"I want my mommy," he wined and her heart broke. How could she possibly tell him that the mother he knew was dead and his real mother was standing in front of him?

"I know you do, sweetheart," was all she could saw as a lump formed in her throat. "Let's get you out of here." She got to her feet after lifting him up and turned around.

She stepped into a small puddle of water but thought it strange when it didn't make a splashing noise. She lifted her foot away when the puddle started to rise in the centre. She jumped over it and watched it from the other side of the room. It rose into a narrow funnel and turned into a man with shiny skin.

"You've got to be kidding me," she whispered.

"We've been waiting for you," the man giggled. She could feel Connor's grip around her neck tighten.

"Who's we?" she cocked her head at him.

He held out his hands and began to walk towards her. She looked from side to side but the only way out was behind him. A shot rang out and she covered the boys head with her hand as water sprayed in her direction. She looked towards the shooter.

"Dean? You scared the bleep out of me!" she ran over to him.

He lowered the gun and asked if she was alright. "And, did you just say bleep?"

She tilted her head towards her shoulder. "I have a child in my arms," she whispered.

Dean understood. "Well, what the hell…?"

"Language," she said turning to leave the room.

"Right, what the bleep was that?" he ran close behind her.

"It looked like an Aquadious demon?"

Dean broke up the name into something he understood. "You mean a demon made of water?"

She shrugged. "Yeah, something like that. They live near lakes and reservoirs because they need to drink a lot of fresh water to survive but as far as I'm aware they only live in Europe."

He asked where the nearest lake was. She climbed the steps as fast as she could holding onto the wall for balance. "There's none around that I know of and I think the nearest river is over 100 miles away." She kicked the door of the shed open and went to run across to her car but suddenly stopped. She held Dean by the coat before he flew passed her.

"What is it?" he asked not wanting to stop too long. She asked where his car was. "Across the grass," he pointed out. "Why?"

She nodded towards the field. There was a shine over it. "It's a marsh."

Dean looked over and saw the two cars parked on the other side of the marsh. If one demon could come out of a small puddle of water, he couldn't imagine how many could be in a marsh. "Aw, bleep!"

Stacy lifted the boy up on her shoulder again. He was getting heavy and was starting to slip.

"So, what do we do? How do we kill them?" Dean turned to her.

She shook her head. "I remember the page and the description of them but I can't remember the ending. I don't know," she tried not to panic. "What stops water?"

He shrugged. "Fire usually works."

"Really, Dean? Fire putting out water?" she replied sarcastically.

"Oh yeah… well, can't you use a spell or something?"

"I can't just randomly cast a spell without knowing what I'm dealing with. What if I give them something that'll make them stronger?"

"Alright, you don't have to shout... you bleep."

Stacy narrowed her eyes and regretted the decision of starting him on that word.

Dean smiled. "Yeah, I know. I'm starting to like it."

"Ice," she shouted, scaring him a little. "If we turn the water to ice, they can't chase us."

"Great," Dean stretched out his arms. "So, all we need is a really big refrigerator."

"Well, what's your great idea mister Brightside?"

"We could always run."

"Ooh, I like that idea," her eyes lit up.

"Give me junior and I'll follow your lead."

She tried pulling Connor's arms away from her neck but he just held on tighter. "Don't run," he whispered over and over. She looked at Dean and sighed. "Anything other ideas?"

They both turned as two cars screeched to a halt on the other side of the grass margin. The occupants stepped out and faced them. Stacy could make out three tall individuals. The moonlight caught the bald head of one man. The tallest of them called out Dean's name.

"Sammy?" he shouted back.

Samuel cupped his hand over his mouth. "Do you guys need some help?"

Dean looked over to Stacy. She sighed and shook her head. "If he asks for the magic word…" They didn't need to reply. Christian and Sam went to the trunks and removed large barrels. Using a crowbar, they removed the lids and poured the contents onto the marsh.


	18. Voodoo Child: Chapter 5

**Part V**

"So, what were in the barrels?" Dean asked as he followed Sam from the car into the house.

"Salt water. It kills them instantly." After he and Christian poured the salt water over the marsh a hiss of giggles were heard then silence.

"And how'd you find us?" Dean wondered.

"Pure luck," Sam shrugged as Samuel joined them.

"When we found out the type of demon we were dealing with we started looking for places they might hang out. There were a couple of marshes in the area. It was just a fluke that we got to you in time," Samuel walked with them to another room.

Stacy was watching Gwen play toy cars with Connor. She looked up as they entered and moved over to them. "Can you believe he's actually smiling?" she was shocked. "He had just witnessed his family's death and had been locked in a dark hole for nearly two days yet still he can find the strength to smile."

"Kids are resilient," Samuel replied.

"That was a good idea with the handkerchief," Sam commended her. "I wouldn't have thought of that."

She smiled in reply. "There are some things a child shouldn't see." Both Samuel's nodded.

"So, what happens now?" Dean asked.

She shrugged. "Take him back to his family, I guess."

"But you're his family," Sam said.

She shook her head. "I'm just a stranger to him."

"You could adopt him," he suggested.

"And bring him up to be a hunter? I know what that life is like. There's a reason why I gave him away in the first place." She looked back at the little boy and sighed. Gwen had constructed a jump way for the cars to fly down and flip over on. Connor giggled with excitement.

"You gave him away to protect him," Samuel said. "He'll be safer with you now then with another family where this could happen all over again. You may not be so lucky next time."

Dean shot him a look of contempt and couldn't believe he would say such a thing. "Can't you put another protection spell on him?" he wondered and tried to push his anger aside.

But Sam said it wouldn't work. "Not unless it makes him invincible and that would draw a lot of attention."

Stacy nodded. She did consider putting an ultimate protection spell on him but Sam was right. If Connor fell of his bike, it would be safer if he _did_ break his arm.

"Have dinner with us," Samuel offered. "Stay tonight and leave fresh in the morning."

But she declined his offer. "I'd prefer to leave now and get there by morning."

She moved over to the boy and picked him up, grabbing some toy cars in the process. She then headed through the men and for the car in silence. She propped the boy on top of a cushion in the passenger seat and clipped the belt around him. She slammed the door as Dean came out and stood next to the driver's side. She walked around the front and went to open her door, but he stopped her.

"Sam's right," he said. "A child should be with his mother."

"His mother's dead," she said coldly and shot a look at Connor. He was staring back at her sadly.

"You don't have to bring him up to be a hunter, you know. It's not too late to retire," he tried.

"What? Like you?" she almost laughed. She didn't know why. The thought of retiring was so tempting.

"It is hard, I won't lie," Dean revealed. "But Connor is your flesh and blood. You could make it work."

She wondered if Connor could fill the hole in her heart that was left there when her family died. Dean saw her bite the inside of her cheek and her eyes dart from side to side as she thought through her options. She had been running away from Raphael half her life. Settling down was going to be different and challenging.

Stacy sighed. "Please don't make this harder than it already is."

He nodded and stepped back allowing her pass. She thanked him for all his help. "You still have my number?" He nodded. She smiled as he helped close her door and she skidded out onto the road.

They were on the road not ten minutes when she noticed Conner staring up at her.

"Are you hungry? We can stop for a burger if you want," she gave a quick smile at the typical diet of a hunter on the road.

He looked down at his new toys. "Are you a magician?" he asked.

She wondered where that had come from.

"You and those men kept talking about spells."

She was surprised that he had even heard that much. She adjusted her mirrors nervously.

"Can you show me a trick?" he enquired.

She glanced down at him and shook her head telling him they would make a pit stop soon and stock up on some sweets. Using both mirrors, she checked to make sure no one else was on the road with them. She looked down at him again. She noticed they shared the same eyes, the same nose and the same chin. He even had long thin fingers like hers. She wondered if Dean was right. Could she really settle down and be a mother?

She sighed heavily and made him swear to secrecy. He nodded enthusiastically. She checked the side mirrors one more time then clicked her fingers.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Third story over. Hoping to have the next story out next week! :)


	19. Welcome to my Nightmare: 1

**AN: **Although this is set in 2014, some things remain the same. Cas is still Cas and Bobby is still Bobby.

**Characters:** Mainly Bobby & Stacy in this story. Dean & Sam are minor characters.

OoooO

**AN:** Pieces taken from Depache Mode's video for Personal Jesus

**1875**

"I'm the First. I am Hers. I'm the First. I am Hers." The girl mumbled to herself over and over as she was brought to the stone arched bridge. The night was cold and starry yet all she wore was a small white dress. The townspeople stood around her. Their faces were emotionless but their eyes angry. The girl's hands and feet had already been bound by them earlier. Two men wrapped a thick rope around her waist and thighs. Still, she mumbled and still, they stared.

Slowly, they lowered her over the side of the bridge into the cold, black river below. She kicked her legs and her hands splashed as she gasped for air. "She dies, she's one of them. She lives, she's one of us," one of townspeople said. They all agreed with his conclusion. They leaned over the wall and watched her struggle ease. The elder nodded at the men to take her out. They heaved and lifted her out into the warmer air. But as she was being pulled out, they lost their grip and the girl hit the water hard. Her head fell back and hit the stone bed with a deafening thud. The elder ordered the others to search the river's sides for life but all they found was darkness. Losing hope, they decided to leave. The elder took one more look over the wall and noticed bubbles rising from the water.

Gasps quietly rose from the people's mouths. One old woman crossed her hand over her chest asking for forgiveness. The girl was being slowly raised out of the water on her own accord. Her hands and feet were no longer tied. As she rose higher and higher, she raised her hands out at her sides until she was looking down upon them. She smiled as the river swelled up behind her and fell as boiling rain. The townspeople screamed as their skin blistered and burnt. They cursed her as they ran for cover. Yet still, the girl mumbled.

OoooO

**2013**

"The world will be yours," the old woman stood at the end of her bed waiting for a response.

The young woman groaned and rolled out of her warm comfortable bed. She had been talking to the woman for several minutes giving short answers, hoping she would get the hint and leave. She sat on the edge of the low bed then stood up. She strolled over to the window and leaned on its ledge. _Why __is __this __happening __to __me? _she thought rubbing her hand over her tired eyes.

_Because __you __are __the __first,_ she heard the woman say but there was an echo around her voice like she was speaking into a hallow bucket. T he girl narrowed her eyes and turned about. _You __can __read __me_, the woman smiled without moving her lips.

_I __can __read __your __mind?_ the girl thought in shock and her mouth dropped.

_And __I __yours,_ the woman began to step towards her and reached out her hand.

"No," the girl shouted shaking her head slightly. "You're not touching me again. I'm not going to let you touch me again." But before she could argue anymore, the woman placed her hand on the girl's forehead and woke her up.

OoooO

**2014**

Bobby snuck through the halls of the derelict school. The three horned animal had eluded him for four days now, but he had successfully tracked him back to this building. He could hear him howl in the distance. The Torent demon mainly ate dogs and cats but also had a soft spot for small children. Bobby lowered his cap on his head and steadied the rifle on his shoulder. Being a descendant to the werewolf family, a silver bullet would sufficiently kill him. He heard the animal howl again but this time it sounded more like of pain than victory.

He hurried down the corridor, quickly scanning each room before passing them. The red liquid escaping the second last room caught his eye. He slowly stepped over the rubble and broken tables that scattered the floor. The animal lay in the corner. His throat was slit wide open with something thin and sharp. _Probably __a __dagger_, he thought. He listened out for any movement. He knew he hadn't been followed and he couldn't remember seeing anyone else around.

Suddenly, he felt his heels lift off the floor. He looked down and stared in disbelief as his feet were slowly being lifted off the floor. He was about two feet in the air with his head nearly touching the ceiling when, uncontrollably, his body turned around to the door where a shadow stood in a dark hooded cape.

"Bobby?" the stranger shadow gasped. Their lapse in concentration broke, dropping him to the floor. He landed hard on his back. The stranger rushed over apologising profusely to him. "I have to work on my landings," the stranger joked and reached out to take his hand, but he flinched and fear shot through his eyes. He grabbed something that felt like a brick and swung it across their head. The heavy body slumped over him, unconscious.

OoooO

The stranger woke with a gasp when the ice cold water hit her face. It was so cold it quickly took her breath away. She blinked her eyes open and shook the wet hair out of her face. She heard the metal bucket being dropped to the floor. She looked up as Bobby moved in front of her and threw his rosary beads into the bucket.

"Are you trying to wake me or melt me?" she asked angrily looking under her eyes.

"I haven't decided yet," he replied before asking her who she was.

She suddenly realised her hands and feet were tied with thick metal chains and the chair she was sitting on was bolted to the floor. "It's me Bobby. It's Stacy," she pleaded with him.

"You may look like her and sound like her but the Stacy I know can't make people levitate with her mind." The only light shone directly over his head. His cap casted a shadow so large, it completely covered his face. He turned his back to pick up a large book that was sitting on the table. He spun around to her and searched the book for the appropriate page.

Stacy took in her surroundings as he tried to find what he was looking for. Books, half melted candles and weapons were thrown around the iron walled room. Her eyes followed a crack of light up to the ceiling. It was then she noticed the familiar markings on the ceiling fan. She moaned loudly. "Jesus Bobby, are you serious? There's no demon in me. It's just me."

"We'll soon see about that," he pointed his finger on the page and read each word loudly.

OoooO

Bobby was flicking through the book once more. _There __has __to __be __a __spell __in __here __somewhere_, he thought. He had tried an exorcism and three other spells, each one requiring a new set of ingredients but all had no effect. The young girl groaned. Her head was hanging forward. There was a rumbling noise and Bobby shot her a look. Maybe the last spell was working. Stacy looked up at him. Her eyes were sad and tired. "Please, Bobby. Call Dean. He'll tell you the truth. I can't keep doing this. I'm hungry and tired and my hands are starting to hurt."

Bobby could see her wrists were starting to redden. He didn't know what he was dealing with and so had made the knots a little tighter than usual. Maybe she was right. Maybe it was time to ask for help. He put the book back on the table and slowly backed out of the iron room turning the double locks.

Upstairs, he dialled the familiar number. The answer he got was a hoarse grunt.

"I have Stacy Stone here," Bobby began. "Anything you want to tell me about her?"

"You mean, other than the fact that she has full blown witch powers?"

There was a pause. "So, it's true. She is a witch?"

"Seems that way, only without the influence of demons," Dean replied with a voice that sounded like he had been woken out of deep sleep. "She never used any of it in front of me though, but says it happened around about the time Sam said yes to Lucifer."

"And you're okay with this?" Bobby asked in disbelief.

"Hell no," Dean bellowed. "But what can I do? I tailed her for a while but she seemed to have a handle on it. Other than doing her job and hunting the supernatural, there was no reason for me to fight her."

Bobby took off his cap to rub his arm over his face. "Well, why the hell didn't you tell me any of this?"

"I kinda had my hands full," Dean grumbled. "Why? What'd she do?"

"Nothing," Bobby sighed. "She didn't do anything." He hung up the phone and tapped it twice with his finger. He shook his head and wondered how he could possibly apologise to her.

He thumped down the stairs and unlocked the heavy iron door. But the chair, he had left her on, was empty and the ropes, he had tied her with, were scattered on the floor. He turned to see her leaning on the table, her legs crossed in front of her, holding a pizza slice. "You want one?" she held the slice up.

"You could have escaped this whole time?" he was confused all over again.

The young woman raised her shoulder and scrunched up her face like he had just found her with her hand in the cookie jar. She took a bite off the corner pulling the melted cheese away with her before she spoke again. "You were already scared of me. I didn't want to freak you out even further. And to be honest, I thought you'd pull a Dean on me and give up after five minutes," she took another bite. "I won't be making that mistake twice," she spoke through a full mouth.

He took a step towards her and saw the large pizza on the table with two cans of cola. She smiled when he looked back up at her. "I usually cook my own food unless it's an emergency. And this," she slapped her grumbling belly, "is an emergency."

"So, you're not mad at me?" he opened a can and leaned beside her. "If Dean didn't give me a good answer, I was planning to start the torturing game."

She shrugged and pulled apart a slice, handing it to him. "Hey, you did me a favour. At least I can cross one thing of the list of the things that might be wrong with me," she took a swig from the can. "Wanna help me with the rest of the list?"

OoooO

"Uncle Harry with protect you, babóg. I'll be home soon," she said before passing on her love and hanging up the phone.

"Is this the same uncle from England?" Bobby opened two beers and sat at the table.

Stacy slipped the phone back in her coat pocket. Her father's brother was the only real family she had left. The last time she saw him, though, was when she was only a child. Liam thought that continuing the hunting business was too dangerous for children to grow up into while her father said that there was too much evil in the world to give it up. "Naw," she shook her head and sat beside him. "Harry isn't really an uncle. We're a dysfunctional family, but it kinda works," she flashed him a smile.

She told him of her son, of how she gave him up and got him back again. "A few friends in high places pushed the papers through and for the past two years we've been living in what used to be a haunted house." She was a good mother, she thought. She packed a lunch for him in the mornings, gave him advice on how to take revenge on bullies without getting caught in the evenings and checked under his bed for real monsters at night.

"Every so often, he has these nightmares and if I'm not there when he wakes up, he has panic attacks." She looked at her watch. It was after midnight. "It's always the same dream too," she told him. "He's asleep in his bed when two demons take him away from his screaming parents. He sees an old woman with large black eyes raise a knife to their throats and then he wakes up." _Her __poor __baby_, she thought. Watching your parents die over and over wasn't something she would wish on anyone.

"In the past year, she's been entering my dreams too," she locked eyes with him. "Whether I'm dreaming about monster trucks or 'My little pony'," she said softly, "she's there… in the distance… just observing… looking all creepy."

Stacy sighed and revealed that in the last three months the woman had been speaking to her. "She tells me I have the power to do something and the next morning I can do it. Like the other night, she said I could read people's minds and when I woke up I knew what Connor wanted for breakfast before he even said it."

_You __can __read __my __mind?_ thought Bobby. She looked up at him, gave a weak smile and nodded.

She shook her head. "But I don't know how to turn it off. Telekinesis, I can live with even though I don't know how to land the person safely on the ground. But telepathy... I don't know how to turn it off." Tears welled up in her eyes. "Do you know what it's like to walk into a crowded room and hear everyone's thoughts? There's not enough aspirin in the world..." She hit the heel of her hand to her forehead. "I just want her out of my head. I want everything to go back to normal. I want to be a mom again." She felt his hand on her shoulder, gently squeezing it.

"Let me see what I can do," he told her and that's all she heard. No fear, no questions, just hope.

OoooO

**AN:** Going to wait to post part 2 after Christmas, so this is me signing off for the week. Happy Christmas/Holidays everyone!


	20. Welcome to my Nightmare: 2

**AN:** Hey all, for those who are still reading... here's the story so far.

Stacy Stone is a young hunter from Brooklyn. When her family died, John Winchester, who is also her god-father, took care of her for a few months. As fate would have it, her path crossed with Sam and Dean's.

In the summary, I said she has a few secrets she's unwilling to share.

Secret 1: She has a son who she gave up for adaption (revealed in story 1 & 3)

Secret 2: She's the true vessel of Raphael (revealed in story 2)

Secret 3: She knows a few spells (revealed in story 3)

Other secrets: Coming soon

The series is made up of 6 stories. This is the second part of the fourth story. Enjoy!

OoooO

**Part 2**

Chris walked by her and gave her a cheeky wink. He was dressed as Superman and his fake muscular body was a hit with all the girls. She laughed and swallowed the pink drink that was sitting in her hand. The party was well on its way. People had been arriving all night and the living room was now very crowded. Another AC/DC song blared through the speakers. Her dad, dressed as Dick Tracy, was bringing out all the classics, much to the enjoyment of her mother. Her long black hair was the perfect costume for Morticia Addams. Stacy knew it was a dream but it was a moment she never got to share with her family, a Halloween party. She looked around at her friends and neighbours. People she remembered before they moved away from Brooklyn. She was experiencing true happiness, she thought. Her heart so full, it felt like it was going to burst. But the realisation hit her when she saw the old woman on the other side of the room.

Her straw like, bushy, grey hair was scattered over her face. The familiar large black eyes sparkled under the party lights. Stacy's face dropped. "Why won't you just leave me alone?"

People passed between them as though they were oblivious to their conversation. "You were never meant to have a normal life. This will only ever be a dream."

Stacy shook her head. _Of course, it's only a dream,_ she thought. _My family is dead._ "What do you want?" she said out loud, knowing the woman had already read her mind.

"I don't want anything. I'm just here to show you the power that you can have."

Her mother screeched with laughter as her brother passed by her. He always had a habit pinching her in places that tickled. Stacy threw her head back and sighed. "Lady, the last guy who entered my dreams offered me power as well and I told him I didn't want them. So what makes you so sure I want them now?"

The woman stepped closer to her. "I'm not offering it to you. The power is already inside you. I'm just opening your eyes to it." With that, she placed her hand on Stacy's forehead and awoke her.

Stacy quickly sat up it the bed and wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead. The noises of the street hit her first, followed by the horns from the cars. She pulled the sheet of the bed up to her neck as a man in a suit walked by. "You got a problem?" she yelled and he looked away smiling. Her room wasn't her room any more. Her bed was on a side walk in the middle of a busy city. People, cars and cyclists passed by staring at the strange girl in the bed in the middle of their street. Stacy closed her eyes tightly and wished to be back in Bobby's house. Within seconds, the room was quiet again. She opened one eye and saw her shoes on the floor. She opened the other and saw the mouldy wallpaper on the walls. Stacy let her head drop to the side and whined. "What the hell was that?"

OoooO

"How'd you sleep?" he asked her when she finally came down the stairs. "Any bad dreams?" He knew by her face she wasn't in the mood for his sarcasm.

"You can add teleportation to the list," she swept passed him and headed for the kitchen. He asked her what happened as she flustered about looking for a glass. "When I woke up, I was on the side of the street, in a city I've never been before!" She couldn't tell if she felt angry or scared but the blood was bubbling inside her and she needed a drink fast. "She was offering me power this time. Power!" She found the bottle of whiskey Bobby kept for special occasions. "Why the hell would I want that?"

She heard Bobby sigh and throw something on the table. "Did she say it's already inside you?"

Stacy stopped pouring and narrowed her eyes. She stepped out to him. "How'd you know that?"

"Because I think it's already inside you."

She tried to hear if he had anything more to say. But other than a few books telling her what she already knew, there was nothing. She had to figure this one out by herself. "So, I already have all the Ts?"

Bobby nodded. "Maybe, she's just opening your mind to the powers you already have."

"So, how come I can't turn them off?" she was starting to get edgy. Her sleepless nights were starting to catch up to her.

She could see he was worried about the ideas that were floating around in his mind all morning. "Maybe... you're just not trying hard enough," he sneakily looked up.

"I'm trying, Bobby. Believe me, I'm trying my frickin' ass off," she dug her finger into her chest.

He raised a shoulder. "Well, maybe you should try harder," he said sheepishly.

Stacy let the anger leave heavily through her nostrils. Her blood had reached boiling point and it needed to let off some steam. She cocked her head and slowly left the room. She topped her glass off and swallowed the liquid as quickly as she could. The harsh whiskey scratched the walls of her throat as she refilled the empty glass.

Bobby apologised. "I've been up all night trying to figure this thing out and I'm not getting very far."

Stacy threw back the second glass and slammed it on the kitchen counter. She clenched her teeth. "Well, maybe you should try harder."

OoooO

She ran her fingers over the furniture and slowly stepped around the room. It was late in the afternoon and they had already made their peace, yet they hadn't spoken a word in a while and Stacy was getting bored. "You know with a bit of cleaning and dusting you could get this place looking like how it used to look when I first saw it." She could tell he was looking up at her although she couldn't see his eyes from under his cap. "We could get rid of those old cars out front and put a lick of paint on the house." She paused and nodded. "Yeah, like how Karen used to have it."

Bobby slammed his hand on the table causing her to jump a little. Her eyes widened and she was suddenly scared. "Stop doing that," he yelled. "What's in my head stays in my head! If I want you to hear it, I'll say it out loud."

She gulped hard and nodded. "I keep forgetting I can do it," she apologised. "Next time, I'll make sure your lips are moving."

He thanked her silently and put his hands back on his book.

"Just one more thing," she raised a finger, "and then your thoughts are all yours." She could see the white of his eyes appear under the shadow. "Who's Rufus Turner?"

OoooO

Bobby stood on the porch with a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue cradled under his arm. He rang the bell again and waited in full view of the security camera.

"Maybe he's not in," Stacy hovered over the bottom step.

"He's in," he quickly glanced up at the camera.

"Why are we here when you clearly don't trust the guy?" she sighed when he turned to her. "You don't have to be a mind reader to see that," she shrugged.

"Where is she?" a voice crackled through the speaker.

Stacy groaned and thumped up the steps. The camera moved down to greet her. She waved and smiled sarcastically.

"You don't look that impressive," the voice said.

"Sorry to disappoint you. Now how 'bout you let us inside?"

"I don't think so," the voice replied and the intercom shut off.

Stacy groaned. "I don't have time for this." She placed her hand on the handle and with ease opened the heavily locked door. Bobby stepped into the house after her. He looked from the door to Rufus, to Stacy and back to the door again. Stacy suddenly realised what she had done. With just a thought, she gained the strength of ten men. She glanced between the two surprised men and tried to swallow her fear. "Your mama's ever tell you it's rude to stare?"

OoooO

"So who is she?" Stacy was eager to get down to business. Bobby had put a message down the wire that he was searching for a grey haired woman with enormous powers. Rufus was the only one who replied.

Rufus huffed and finished his cereal before he spoke. "She's a sorceress, also known as Helena," he licked the back of his spoon. "She's more powerful than any demon... or angel, for that matter."

"What does she want with me?" she shrugged.

"She doesn't want anything from you," he paused to smile. "Do you want to see the book?"

Stacy sat alone at the table. Bobby stood behind and leaned over her shoulder. Rufus told them he found the book while following a case in Germany. "It contains all your answers." He flicked it open to a page showing a picture of woman Stacy recognised from her dreams. "Hundreds of thousands of years ago, a sorceress was born through the bringing together of two witches. A sorceress so powerful, that she put fear in the eyes of God himself. For years they lived in harmony," he turned over the page to reveal a drawing of a battle. "Until the sorceress decided she wanted the world at her feet." He flicked a few pages ahead to a drawing that everyone recognised. The day the dinosaurs became extinct. "God won and banished her to the underworld for eternity."

"Wait a minute," Stacy looked up and laughed. "Are you saying that Helena was the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs?"

"Don't be ridiculous! I'm saying that she created a crater the size of an asteroid! Scientists just filled in the gaps," he sat down across from her. "Anyway, realising her fate she casted a spell. When two witches would join together again, a baby would be born with the ability to unlock her powers. Each generation thereafter would be able to access more and more until finally..." he turned the pages and pointed to a single line. Stacy leaned over and read it aloud.

"And he shall grow more powerful than all that walk the earth." Stacy smirked. "Well, unless the doctor was fibbing, I think the book got the gender wrong."

"Did they?" Rufus asked. They both looked at him. "You have a son, don't you? Noticed anything... different about him?"

She shook her head. She knew Connor didn't have anything but wondered when she started showing. She remembered her mother teaching her her first spell when she was eleven, but couldn't remember if she could do anything before that.

Bobby placed his hand on her shoulder. "Let's deal with one problem at a time, shall we?" He pointed to the drawn picture of the sorceress. "Is there a reason why she's in the centre of the demon protection symbol?"

Rufus nodded. "It's a permanent symbol she puts on all her children," he asked Stacy if she had a scar or birthmark. She shook her head. "Then it's under your skin."

She narrowed her eyes. "I think I would know if someone tried to put a symbol under my skin."

"Not if you were born with it."

OoooO


	21. Welcome to my Nightmare: 3

**AN: **I only own the OCs

OoooO

**Part III**

"You know there is one person we could ask. Someone who is a specialist in all this," Bobby helped her carry her bags out of the bedroom. They had planned to stay at a motel that night after meeting Rufus but after hearing what he had to tell them, they quickly changed their minds and decided to head back to home.

She immediately read his mind and told him no. "That's not going to happen."

"Why not?" he argued. "He knows a little bit about getting hit with a lot of power he doesn't know how to control."

But she shook her head in defiance. "I am not going to run to the Winchesters every time I have a problem."

"You only ever ran to John," he had a point. "You've never asked the boys for help."

"And I'm not about to start now," her smile told him he should end the conversation but he knew asking Sam for advice was a good idea. She held up her hand to stop him from going any further. "Look, I know what you're going to say. They're practically family and family always helps each other out. But if I went to them, they'd only go to you for advice. So, I've decided to cut out the middle man and just come to you."

"That's not true," he watched her as she spoke. Her eyes wouldn't meet his. "You might be able to read my mind but I can read yours just as well."

Her eyes scattered the floor. "I don't know what you're talking about," she threw her bag over her shoulder and tried to leave but Bobby grabbed her by the elbow.

"It's not a sign of weakness to ask for help, you know," he assured her.

OoooO

The demon stood a metre away from her. His head was low and his clothes were torn. His breathing was shallow and quick. They hadn't been fighting long but a lot of strength had been exerted and they both needed to take a minute breather. Stacy wiped her hand across her mouth and noted the red liquid that appeared. She could taste iron in her mouth and tried spitting it out. The demon smiled when he realised she was hurting just as much as he was.

"You want to give up?" his smile dropped when she declined. "So be it."

They both charged at each other and exchanged blows to the head and body.

"This is surprising," a voice appeared behind them.

Stacy let go and they both turned around. The sorceress was watching them with a confused look in her eyes. "Even in sleep you dream about hunting."

But Stacy shook her head and looked over to the demon. In their conversation, he had disappeared. "No, I dream about the ultimate fight where the demon and I are of equal strength."

"So, who wins?" she asked.

Stacy shrugged. "I never get that far. Someone always wakes me up."

OoooO

Bobby woke her up as he pulled the car into the driveway. She had slept all the way back and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. He asked her did she have any dreams and she nodded. "But you woke me before she could do anything."

"Well, that's promising," Bobby unlocked the front door and led her into the house. "Maybe she's finished with you."

"Yeah," Stacy laughed. "Do you really think it's going to be that easy?"

Bobby groaned and shook his head. "Yeah, what was I thinking?" He threw his bag on the floor by the stairs and headed into the kitchen to search for some food. All he found was beer and he handed Stacy a bottle as well. She unscrewed the cap and knocked back a few mouthfuls. They sighed in silence both thinking about the stories Rufus had told them earlier. Stacy looked to Bobby about to ask him something, when a light caught her eye. It was faint and in the distance but it seemed to be moving closer to them. "What _is_ that?" she murmured stepping closer to the window.

"Are you expecting any visitors?" Bobby asked her as they stepped outside to see who was coming.

She shook her head and narrowed her eyes. "Do you hear that?" she cocked her head to the side. The sound was faint like footsteps over short grass.

They had only just looked at each other when a vampire sprang from the bushes and threw himself onto Stacy. Bobby grabbed a nearby saw and sliced it into his neck cutting it straight off. Stacy went to thank him, when a zombie leaped on the back of him aiming his mouth on Bobby's neck. Bobby spun around and tried to get rid of him. Stacy helped and succeeded in killing him. Then they both ran back into the house, locking the door after them.

"What the hell is going on here?" Bobby fixed his cap on his head and moved back to the living room. "And what the hell are you doing here?"

Stacy followed him in and nodded to the man sitting on the couch in the room. "Rufus," she acknowledged him calmly like she was expecting him.

"You knew he followed us back here?" Bobby noticed her calm reaction. "Why the hell didn't you tell me?"

She shrugged. "I didn't think he'd come inside!"

Rufus gave a half smile. "What's it like out there?" he asked telling them Stacy had just become a new celebrity. "Word's got out that there's a new sorceress in town and people want to see her in action. Well, when I say people, I mean the un-dead and demonic."

Bobby was sceptical of his motives. "And would this word have come from you?"

But Rufus shook his head. "No, it came from sources lower than me. My curiosity got the better of me too and I decided to follow them out here."

"So the fact that you came into the house has nothing to do with the fact that there are a couple of...

"Fifty," Stacy interrupted.

"Fifty?"

She nodded. She could sense them all. There were ten outside and the rest were on their way.

"Fifty demons outside," he finally finished his sentence and gulped in fear.

"No, of course not," but he stood to attention when the thumping began on the front and back doors.

"What are we going to do?" Stacy wanted to know. "We're only three."

They both looked to Bobby and waited for him to think. "There are weapons under the floor boards of the couch and in the press under the sink." They heard a window up the stairs shatter and footsteps creaked through the hall. They all looked up. "Get to the panic room as soon as you can," he instructed them. "We'll be safe in there until we figure out our next step."

Stacy ran to the couch just as two zombies threw themselves through the window. She lifted up the couch and knocked them over giving her enough time to pry open the floor boards and grab as many weapons as she could. One zombie grabbed her by the neck and pulled her away from the hole in the floor. Stacy grabbed an empty shot gun and hit the butt of the gun into one of the zombies. She kicked the other zombie as she frantically tried to load the gun as quickly as she could.

Bobby opened the door to the basement, violently hitting the door into one of the demon's faces. He knew they would be safe in panic room from demons but they needed to be safe from the vampires and zombies too.

Rufus ran to the kitchen and began searching under the sink. But someone pulled him away and crashed him through the kitchen table. The vampire's eyes glistened in the night light as he moved closer to the hunter. He began opening his mouth, exposing his incisors, hoping to get a taste. But Rufus had already acquired a machete and sliced it through the vampire's neck. Another vampire entered the house and was met with the same fate.

Rufus ran out of the kitchen and saw Bobby run down the stairs. Stacy was on the floor in front of him shooting zombies with her gun. He rushed up to her to save her from a closing vampire then helped her to her feet. They turned to get to the basement. Stacy was leading the way shooting anything in sight. Rufus was close behind protecting them from anything that came up behind.

They ran down the stairs into the panic room and saw a zombie tearing into Bobby. Stacy screamed and threw a closed fist in front on her. The zombie was quickly lifted into the air and thrown backwards towards the wall. Just before he hit it, he disintegrated into a thousand pieces.

Rufus appeared beside her with a fallen jaw. "What the hell was that?" he asked reminding himself never to argue with her again.

"I don't know, I..." Stacy lowered her hand in shock. "That wasn't supposed to happen." She looked at her trembling hand as Rufus rushed passed her and knelt beside Bobby. His insides were torn out and blood was gushing everywhere. "We have to call for an ambulance," she knelt down too and tried to contain the blood.

"It's too late for that. Can't you do anything? Some kind of spell?" Rufus asked. Bobby grabbed her elbow. "No dragons," he gave a half smile.

Stacy tried to run through all the healing spells she knew but her mind suddenly went blank when she couldn't read her friend any more. Bobby's eyes had glazed over and a small gasp of breath left his lungs. She shook her head. "This isn't real. This has to be a dream," she tried shaking him awake.

Rufus pinched the back of her hand. "Did that hurt?" He watched her shake her hand in agony. "Then it's not a dream, is it?"

She still couldn't believe it though. Bobby was dead and it was all her fault. She was overcome with grief yet her eyes wouldn't let her cry. Rufus began to pace the room. "What are we going to do?" he rubbed his hand over his face. "We were outnumbered when there were three of us!" He could hear the upstairs floor boards creak. "This is the last time I listen to my curiosity," he groaned.

OoooO

Bobby quickly left the bedroom to answer the ringing door just as a tear fell down Stacy's cheek. Meeting him at the door was a bald, well built man. His hands were resting on the shoulders of a young boy who was the image of his mother. "That was fast," Bobby invited them inside his home.

"To be honest," Harry introduced himself, "we were already on the road when you called us. Stacy always calls if she knows she won't be home a night. Plus, Connor has started asking questions and Stacy was always better at bending the truth."

The young boy began climbing the stairs. "Hey kid," Bobby tied to stop him but somehow he knew where to go.

Harry smirked and turned his head. "Yeah, he and Stacy have this... bond. I can't really describe it, other than its freaky." He stood at the bottom step slightly reluctant to follow the boy upstairs. "How long has she been asleep like this?" he asked Bobby and was told three days. "Have you ever seen anything like this before?"

"Once," he revealed. "But you have to consume some voodoo juice before you go to sleep and I was with her the whole time."

There was a scream from the bedroom and both men chased each other up to where the small boy was holding his hands. "She burnt me," he looked up at them with tears in his eyes.

Bobby felt Stacy's forehead. It was warm but she had no fever. He then felt her hands but had to pull back quickly. They were scorching hot. Hot enough to cause blisters.

OoooO

Stacy closed the lids of her friend's eyes. She slowly got to her feet and wiped the blood from her hands into her jeans. "What are you going to do?" Rufus narrowed his eyes at her when she turned her back on him.

"Wait here and lock the door behind me," she ordered and began climbing the staircase. There was nothing going through her mind. No fear or anger, just an unusual calm. She opened the door at the top step into a sea of demons. Normally, they would be attacking her but they didn't on this occasion. She locked Rufus in the basement and moved through them as they parted a path for her. Her breathing was easy and her heart rate normal as she passed the black eyed demons and sharp toothed vampires.

"Have you come to play?" she asked them looking from one to the other. They nodded greedily. "You wanna see a trick?" she gave a slight smile. She held up both hands to waist level, palms up. She clicked her fingers and revealed a small ball of fire in each hand. Excitement passed through the crowd as the balls began to grow slightly larger in size. Then she violently slammed her hands together and obliterated everyone around her.

OoooO


	22. Welcome to my Nightmare: 4

**AN: **Some words are taken from Series 7 Episode 7

**Part IV**

Another chapter, another book and another scrap of paper. They knew looking for an invisible witch was going to be impossible but they hoped they could find a way to wake their friend. Bobby had given Harry some books to search through yet they all came up with the same answer, nothing. He had found a passage on the 'voodoo juice' that Bobby had taken on a previous case with similar side effects, but since they had drank and eaten from, as Bobby put it, a secure area, he didn't believe this was the reason for her slumber. However, Harry still wanted to brush up his knowledge and left Booby to call Rufus again, even though the last few times were all in vein.

They were in the bedroom, afraid to leave her side. Connor had pushed his chair closer to the bed. He was now sitting with his heels on the end of the chair, his knees under his chin. He was afraid to hold her hand in case he got burnt again. Suddenly, his chair fell back and he called for his uncle. Harry raised his head out of his book and threw back his chair as well. He called out for Bobby. Heavy thumping noises came up the stairs and Bobby appeared at the doorway. He looked from Harry to Connor to the bed and his jaw dropped. It was empty. He slowly moved forward and lifted the sheets, hoping somehow he wasn't seeing things properly.

Connor opened his mouth to say something, but instantly stopped when she reappeared again. All three stepped back in surprise and Connor ran into the arms of his uncle. "What the hell is happening?" Harry said to the room. Bobby shook his head slightly. "We're going to need more help."

OoooO

He pulled the curtains back as his ears were alerted to a car pulling around the house. He swung open the front door before the man had time to knock. But his smile disappeared when there was just one man standing in front of him. Dean gave a grunt as he stepped inside. "Where's Sam?" Bobby asked.

Dean looked up at him. "You know we haven't worked with each other in a while," he glanced over his shoulder out the door. "He said he'd be here in an hour."

He moved into the living room. A tall man greeted him with a handshake and introduced himself. Dean looked down at the small boy and knelt in front of him to shake his hand. "My God, you're exactly like your mother," he commented. "Better looking, of course," the boy replied rudely. Dean stood back up and smiled at Bobby. "Yep, he's definitely Stacy's!"

OoooO

"Stop that," Dean mumbled not looking up from his notes.

"Stop what?" Sam replied.

"That noise!"

"What noise?" Sam played dumb. He was leaning back on his chair and bringing it forward every so often until it creaked under his weight. When he found the appropriate sound, he thought it fun to repeat it over and over much to the annoyance of his brother. Dean groaned and kicked his foot out nearly toppling him backwards. Sam grabbed the table in time and steadied himself in the chair.

Harry looked up from his notes. They were uneasy around each other since they arrived and this was the first time they had spoken to each other properly. Whatever was going on between them, he hoped they could put it aside to help them solve the case.

"You did that on purpose," Sam yelled.

"Of course I did. You're pissing me off!" Dean still held his eyes on his notes.

Bobby slapped his hand on the top of the table causing them to immediately stop their arguing. "Get out," he ordered pointing to the door. "And don't come back in until you've both calmed down and sorted this out." Reluctantly, they did as they were told. As they left, they heard Bobby tell Harry he was surrounded by idjits.

Dean felt his brother's elbow shove him in his back as he exited the front door. He swung around and could see his little brother flex his jaw and roll his fists into tight balls. They hadn't worked with each other for years and whenever Dean tried to talk, all Sam ever wanted to do was fight. This time was no different. Yet again, he was getting ready for another fight.

"Look, there are only so many times I can apologise. I can't apologise anymore," Dean held up his hands in defeat.

"I don't want your apologies. I'm sick of your apologies," Sam spat. "I just want to know why you killed her after I told you she didn't need to die. I told you how she saved me. I told you why the murders were just a once off. Amy promised me she wouldn't do it again and I believed her," he spoke of Amy Pond, a kitsoonay Dean killed behind his back in Montana. "You promised me you'd leave her alone and I believed you too." He continued even though Dean had turned his back on him like he wasn't listening. "You killed my friend and then you lied to me."

"She was a monster that killed four people," Dean bellowed. "I just did something that you couldn't do. That's what family does, the dirty work." Dean wiped the sweat from his upper lip with one hand and rolled his shoulders forward. "What do you want me to say, Sammy? That she was a freak and she had to be put down. That you're a freak and you'll have to be put down too."

Sam raised his hands in the air and gave a loud laugh. "My God, you've finally admitted it. It only took you, what?" he looked at his empty wrist. "Five years!"

A sudden noise stopped them and they quickly allowed their eyes to fall on a heap of rusted cars. Dean silently motioned two fingers to Sam telling him to go round the right side of the heap. Sam nodded and they both circled the cars quietly. It was only when they met each other on the other side that they saw the small boy sitting up on the boot of a car with his feet wrapped under his legs.

"Hey buddy," Dean's voice woke him out of his concentration. He was busy flicking something off his fingers but stopped when he was spotted. "I thought you were upstairs in the bedroom with your mother."

The young boy shrugged and swung his jet black hair away from his face to reveal his slight facial features and long dark eyelashes that covered the colour of his eyes. "She kept disappearing on me," he mumbled sadly.

Dean shared a concerning look with Sam. "Was she still there when you left?" he asked and leaned beside him on the car. The boy nodded that she was.

"Do you know that she's a magician?" the boy asked them after a few moments.

"Yup," Sam replied leaning against a tower of tyres across from him. "Did she show you any of them?" The boy nodded. "Which ones?"

But Connor slowly rolled his head around his shoulders. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone," he slowly replied.

Dean tried to remember some of the spells she had told him about as the only one he ever saw was the protection spell she had on her mother's journal. "Did she show you what happens when she clicks her fingers?" was the only thing he could think of although he couldn't remember what she said happened.

The boy nodded enthusiastically. "That's my favourite," he grinned.

"Did she ever show you how to do it?" Sam wondered but the boy shook his head disappointedly. "She says it's too dangerous to play with fire," he looked to Dean to see if she was right and Dean agreed that she was. He then shuffled his hand through the boy's hair and told him they were going to do everything they could to wake her up.

OoooO

Rufus flicked through the German book and tore a bite through the sandwich he had just made. He leaned on the door frame and waited for her to return. She had wanted to practice her teleportation skills before going long distances and before bringing company. Initially, she had tried going from inside the house to out in the yard. Then, she tried going to places she couldn't see, like from the yard to the end of the road. Now, she was trying to go to places that were even further away.

She reappeared in front of him. He dropped the book to the floor with a slap and took another bite of his sandwich. There was a look of puzzlement on her face. Her eyes followed the book to the floor and she watched the cloud of dust dissipate. Her face drained of colour. "How's it looking?" Rufus asked her.

"I think you have to see this?" she took hold of his arm and within a second they were no longer standing in front of Bobby's house.

Rufus looked down at his now empty hand. "Any chance of tweaking that ability to allow us to bring snacks?" he asked as she stepped around him and looked at the house in front of them. It was a wreck. Tree branches were growing through it and the window shutters were struggling to hang on. He wondered why she had brought him there.

"This is where I used to live... where I do live," she shook her head. "In the future..." she couldn't get her head around it. Neither could Rufus and asked her to explain it again. "I live here," she sighed. "This is what the house looked like when I first bought it. But I did it up. I painted it and did up the garden... I don't understand why it would look like this again."

"Did you check inside?"

She nodded. "No one could live in there," she sadly replied and wondered where her family had gone. She reached out to his shoulder, then brought him back to Bobby's place.

OoooO


	23. Welcome to my Nightmare: 5

**Part V**

She followed him through the streets of Berlin. They had decided to go where Rufus had acquired the book. It was the only lead they had to try to find the sorceress, Helena. Rufus said it was rumoured to have originated in the cellar of an old cathedral. Stacy had an idea which one it was. There were only a few churches still standing in Berlin that were old enough to hold a book that valuable. As they walked together, she noticed that every person that she passed looked straight through her. When she tried reading them, she heard nothing. "They're all fake," she whispered.

"What was that?" Rufus turned around.

"Nothing," she shook her head and told him she must have transported them to the wrong side of the city. "Well, if you tell me where we're going, I might be able to help," he said and kept walking ahead. "Let's just say, I've backpacked through Europe when I was younger," he joked and saw her smile. "I can only imagine," she threw her head to the side.

For ten minutes she followed him, watching his footsteps as she considered where to go. She was getting tired of the same questions like "where are we going?" and "should we teleport somewhere else?"

"How 'bout we stop for a snack?" she stopped. "I'm starving." She waited for him to turn around to her. He placed his hands on his hips and nodded. "I know a little cafe parallel to this street," she smiled and pointed. "They do great coffees." He held out his hand for her to lead the way.

This time, she walked in front of him and she was cautious not to show any fear. Everything was different now and she knew she just had to pretend for just a few more steps.

She stepped into an empty courtyard that was surrounded by high stone walls. It was an area where local children played hand ball. She quickly turned to him and flung her hand out in front of her. Before he could fight back, he was thrown high up against the opposite wall. He tried pulling his head free but it was like she had slapped some superglue on him. "What the hell is going on here?" he yelled asking had she lost her mind.

"How about we stop pretending and you tell me who you really are?" she narrowed her brow and pushed out her lips.

The fear in his eyes disappeared and his face hardened. "What gave me away?" he asked.

"Back at Bobby's house," she told him, "when I told you about Raphael. Any hunter I've spoken to may have hated him, but there was also fear behind their eyes. You, on the other hand, had nothing but hatred... hatred and contempt. Why was that?" she cocked her head at Helena. "You didn't like the idea of someone else playing with me?"

Rufus smirked. "I've spent thousands of years preparing for your arrival. Every generation, I've added a piece of myself. So yes, I did hate the fact that he chose you as his true vessel. He saw what I was doing and he knew I wouldn't appear to you until I thought you were ready."

"So, what is this?" Stacy wondered. "A series of tests? Because you do know I failed the first one. I couldn't save Bobby."

"You weren't meant to save Bobby," he informed her. "All the tests had to follow his death. I had to see how you would react before you could be tested in the real world."

_The real world,_ Stacy thought. _But I am in the..._ She looked up at the man who looked like Rufus and her face relaxed. "This is all a dream," she concluded. That was whey she couldn't read the minds of the people on the streets. No one was real. "But we're in your dream. That's why you wanted to know where we were going. That's why my house looks like it did in the past. I'm in your memories."

Rufus nodded. "You figured out how to block your thoughts from me earlier than I expected."

OoooO

"Is it just me," Bobby took himself away from the window, "or is that kid a little on the calm side?" He could see Connor playfully talk to Sam and Dean from the house.

Harry opened his eyes and breathed in slowly through his nostrils. He hadn't slept properly for days and his eyes begged for rest. "He doesn't believe we can save her," he replied sadly. "He's seen how powerful the sorceress is. Nearly every night, he replays seeing his parents die. He was kept by her for nearly two days. He's never spoken to me about what she did to him," he sighed. "But he won't even go to sleep unless he knows Stacy will be there when he wakes up the next morning." He shook his head in thought. "It's like she knows when he dreams about her. She's always there for him when he needs her."

Bobby noticed him unfold his hands. "You know, no one's there to listen to your prayers."

Harry smiled. "So I've been told but that doesn't stop me from trying."

OoooO

She still held him up against the wall and was surprised how little energy she was exerting. Lifting him up was like lifting up a sheet of paper. "So, how do you know I won't just chop off your head right now and end this dream?"

Rufus smiled. "It doesn't work like that. I'll just return as someone else. Someone you love, like your mother or father, or someone you consider a father." His eyes became large, his skin lighter and his shoulders widened. She gulped hard and her eyes watered when the figure in front of her called her 'pebbles'. It was her favourite nickname and he was the only person who was allowed to use it. "Or maybe I'll change into someone who's still alive. That way you won't know if killing me will hurt them outside this dream," he turned into John's eldest son and finally shrunk into the last figure. "So, what do you say mommy? Are you going to try one last test?"

Stacy dropped her head and stared hard at her shoes. She knew the boy in front of her was not her son but she also knew she didn't want to take the chance of hurting him in the real world. Reluctantly, she agreed to follow him.

"What happens now?" she asked the boy following him out of the courtyard passing the driving cars and endless crowds.

"We end this?" the boy took her to Brandenburg Gate and turned around to face her. He held out his hands. "The ultimate battle," the boy stated and slowly he transformed into the straw haired witch, she recognised from her dreams.

"Are you serious?" Stacy laughed. "I can't fight you."

"But it's what you've always dreamed of... the ultimate fight," the woman looked around. The arena was empty. There were no cars and no more people. "You may not think it but we are of equal strength now. Everything I have, you have too," she raised her hands out from her sides.

Stacy thought about her answer before speaking. "What happens if I loose?"

"You stay in this dream forever," she replied.

Stacy gulped hard and thought again. "And if by incredible chance I do win, what happens then?"

The witch raised a smile in one corner. "You get the world."

OoooO

Bobby sat at the table at the end of the bed and watched her sleep. In the last few minutes, cuts and bruises had started appearing and disappearing all over her body. He could see her hands redden slightly, yet he was unable to help her. He sighed heavily and glanced out the door to the empty hall. Twitching his foot, he clasped his hands together and looked upwards. He looked passed the ceiling and into the sky to where no God stood and no angels listened. He then closed his eyes and did something he hadn't done since his wife got sick. He prayed. He made little promises to ensure Stacy's safe return. "I'll clean up my act," he promised. "Clean up the house, like how my wife had it. I'll even paint the outside in whatever colour she wants."

"I like blue," a female voice broke his concentration.

He lowered his head and in awe watched as the young woman folded the wash cloth that was lying over her forehead. "Is this real?" he placed his hands on the table and pushed himself to his feet. "Am I dreaming?"

The young woman sat up in the bed and smiled at him. Her eyes were warm and alive, yet he still couldn't believe it.

"Mommy!" Connor appeared at the door way immediately jumping onto the bed and into her arms. Stacy wrapped her hands around the boy's body and squeezed it tightly. "My sweet boy," she whispered.

Harry appeared at the doorway and his mouth fell open. "What did you do?" he asked Bobby and ran for the bed as well. Bobby shook his head, looked to the ceiling and wondered.

OoooO


	24. Welcome to my Nightmare: 6

**Part VI**

"Is that true?" Stacy's face appeared in the room. Bobby jumped to her side saying she should be in bed resting. "I've been asleep nearly a week," she reassured him with a gentle smile. "I think I'm well rested." She looked back at Castiel. He had arrived only half an hour ago but she could hear them all argue through the walls. She wasn't going to even bother coming out but one thing Castiel said caught her attention and she was hopeful his words were true. "So, is it true? Can you really relieve me of these powers?"

Castiel nodded. "You've only newly acquired the full brunt of them. If I remove them now, you may still be strong enough to survive but it is an extremely painful procedure."

"So, it's a win win situation," Dean remarked.

As the conversation continued, Stacy's attention was drawn to the upstairs bedroom. She could see Connor awkwardly curled up on a chair. He was in a deep peaceful sleep. She knew he hadn't slept properly since she started this case. She could see Harry leaned over him and moved a slip of hair away from his face. He then placed a shawl over the small boy to keep him warm.

She placed her first finger and thumb over her tired eyes and rubbed hard. "I can't believe I'm going to say this," she groaned, "but I think I want to keep them."

"Then you must die," Cas revealed to a surprised room.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," Dean shook his head. "Not on my watch."

OoooO

"Can you guys keep the racket down?" Harry suddenly appeared on the stairs. "I have a child..." He suddenly noticed the stranger in the room and he questioned Stacy with his eyes.

"Harry, may I introduce you to Castiel? He says he's here to kill me," she smiled angrily and turned back to the angel saying she would fight him to keep her powers.

"You will not succeed," he replied.

"Okay, wait," Sam held his hands up when the tension arose again. "Can't you just kill the bitch that started all of this?"

Castiel agreed that would be a good idea but told him the bitch was dead. Stacy shot a shocked look to Harry. She had killed her in her dream but she thought it was only a dream. She didn't think their battle would actually result in death.

"We've been trying to track the sorceress down ever since the book was written but to no avail. She was always cloaked," he told them.

Stacy raised her chin in thought. "Raphael was sent to kill her, wasn't he? But he found me instead."

Castiel sighed in agreement. "Actually, he found your mother but she died before she could inherit everything. While he pretended to be searching for the sorceress, he was actually waiting for you to be ready to be his ultimate vessel. He kept the connection between you and her, a secret. The rest of us only recently found out." He turned to Dean and apologised. "I realise this must be difficult for you but you don't realise what Stacy is capable of. She can rip your heads off with a single thought, cause a heat wave that would envy the sun and can even reverse time."

They all looked to her. "I can only freeze it," she shrugged, "and only for a few seconds. Anyway," she pointed back, "he can look into the future!"

"Yes," he turned to her. His face was emotionless. "Yes, I can." Just after she woke up, he had seen a glimpse into the future and it looked worse than when his brothers foresaw the Apocalypse.

Her eyes softened and her head shook slightly when she realised what he was saying. "No, hell no, I am not going through this again," she sliced the air with her hands. "I'm not going to dictate my life according to what some angel sees in the future. It's not going to happen. No way. Not again," and with that she stormed out of the room and out the front door.

OoooO

Sam followed her out to where she stood between their cars. Her back was to him and she was clicking her fingers. As soon as he wondered if she was going to set something alight, she stopped.

"How you guys are friends with an angel never ceases to amaze me?" she mumbled rubbing her hand over her head.

"Sometimes it's handy to be friends with the enemy," he whispered loud enough for her to hear him.

She slowly turned around biting on her bottom lip. Sam noticed that she was on the verge of tears. "It's like I'm stuck in some damn loop," she shook her head. "And I don't know how to get out of it." She looked deep into his eyes. "How do I get out of it?"

He shrugged. He didn't know what to say. His best friend was looking to him for help and he didn't know how to make it better. "You could let him take everything."

She surprised him with a laugh. "I thought that all this would stop. I killed a friggin' sorceress, for Christ sake." She dropped her head and closed her eyes. A tear slid down her cheek. "All I ever wanted was a normal life," she gave a heavy sigh. "I guess there's no such thing as normal, is there?"

Her attention was turned to Dean who she saw walking towards them. "Are you two still fighting?" she asked Sam. He didn't answer. "You know maybe you should forgive and forget. He was only doing what he thought was right." Dean arrived before Sam could reply and took a deep breath. "We have a compromise," he announced and waited for a response but all he got were worried faces. "He won't kill you if you agree to suppress your abilities."

She shrugged. "So, what... I'm on suicide watch?"

He nodded. That was one way to put it. "Plus, they want to be able to see you at all times, so you have to agree you can't be cloaked."

They both watched and waited for her to ponder her fate. She leaned her back on the Impala and gave a heavy sigh. "You know if I didn't have Connor, I think I'd actually prefer to die." Both brothers glanced at each other. They didn't like to see her give up so easily, especially now.

"I can't believe he still takes the future as fact," she took herself away from the car. "We've already proved him wrong on that. If I could go back in time, I think I'd go back to Rachel Thorne's house and leave before you two arrived," she lied and could see the hurt in their faces. She sighed again and shook her head. "But despite what Cas thinks, I can't reverse time," she gave a quick smile, "so I guess I'm stuck with you."

They both nodded and she could see from their faces they were itching to ask her something. She groaned. "Do you want me to read you or are you going to say it out loud?" she asked and wasn't surprised when they were both wanted to know the same thing.

"I thought of Connor," she replied when they asked how she managed to beat the sorceress. "He has this game he likes to play with his friends called 'Heroes and Aliens' where each hero has a special power. Connor likes to wear a tea towel over his shoulders and pretend it's a shield. I just... imagined it... and it happened." It was the only way she would describe it. It was like she was in an _impenetrable_ bubble and no matter what was thrown at her, it didn't hurt.

"I'll agree to suppressing my powers," she gave in. "But with regards to not going into hiding… I'll only do it for Castiel. It's not safe enough right now to be in the open for everyone to see me."

"This is your life we're talking about," Dean argued.

"Don't you think I know that," she spat back. "See, I've seen what Cas has seen of the future and he has a right to be scared. He's right to want to kill me right now. But what he saw wasn't me. It wasn't me doing all that destruction." When she first saw it, she assumed it was the sorceress that was going to kill all those people but now that she was gone, there was only one person left.

Sam whispered Raphael's name and she nodded. "He's back."

OoooO

Stacy opened the door of the bedroom. Castiel had agreed to the terms and conditions of her proposal and let her family go home alive. If a demon showed up at the front door, all they'd see would be a burnt out house. If an angel did somehow find them, not even the sun's strongest rays could cast their shadows. Castiel would be the only one who could see her. Connor was sitting up in his bed flicking something off his fingers. He stopped when he saw her at the door.

"What'd I tell you about that?" she whispered.

His head fell in defeat. "Fire's not a toy."

"Then why do you insist on trying to click your fingers," she stepped towards him and sat on the side of his bed.

"Because, I want to be just like you," he mumbled.

She sighed and lifted up the sheets for him to slide under. "Believe me, one of me is enough in this world. Anyway, I'd love you more if you grew up to be yourself." She smiled when their eyes met. She then kissed him on the forehead and leaned to stand but he caught her arm and tugged her back.

"Are we... are those men... are they?" he stumbled and Stacy wished she could listen in. She told him to think of the sentence in his head before speaking. He sighed and looked away for a moment. "Are we going to ever see Bobby again?"

Stacy dropped her head to the side. "Only if you want to," she smiled when he nodded frantically. She stepped over to the door and flicked the night light on. "It's okay, mommy. I don't need that light anymore," he told her. Her eyes widened and she flicked it off again. "Sweet dreams, babóg," she pulled the door after her. Connor pulled the blanket up to his neck and curled into a ball. In the darkness, black eyes glistened in the corner of the room waiting for the final test.

OoooO

**AN:** Phew, that took a while. For some reason, I couldn't write for Sam and Dean. But the next story is flying out of me so hopefully i'll have it up soon.


	25. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 1

**Title**: My Boy builds Coffins – Story 5 of series 'Complicated Disaster'

**Rating**: Teen

**Summary**: The Winchester brothers are on a case where seemingly random people are being murdered but just as they get closer to the killer, they bump into an old friend.

**Disclaimer**: I only own the OCs... unfortunately!

**AN**: Set in 2020. Although, the story is set in the future, some things remain the same. Cas is still an angel & the wall in Sam's head hasn't fallen.

**Catch up: **Stacy Stone, a hunter, is also a distant relation to a powerful sorceress named Helena. When Stacy acquired all of Helena's powers, Cas foresaw a moment of destruction in the future. To protect herself and her family, she suppressed her powers and went into hiding.

* * *

><p>The worn out looking man threw himself on the couch and flicked on the box. He was tired of his boring job and sick of his monotonous life. He closed his eyes and prayed for... something... anything. He asked for the same thing every night. He wished for a new job or a new location or even someone to talk to. The doorbell rang and he opened his eyes. That was something different!<p>

* * *

><p>Sam was leaning on the boot of his car. His mind halfway to the middle of nowhere when Dean pulled up in front of him. There was a confident look about him and he was grinning like everything was good in the world. Dean stepped out and smiled back. They walked up to each other and embraced warmly.<p>

"Congratulations, Sammy," he whispered and asked how did it feel.

"Scary and exhilarating," he announced. "Juggling two girls at once? Now, I know how you feel."

"Dude," Dean placed his work on the boot of his brother's car. "You'll never know how it feels to juggle two at once. It's like waking up in hell every morning..." he raised his eyebrow. "Well, not exactly but its damn close."

Sam's laughter echoed through the trees. He pulled the case file close to him and asked what they had. "Three loners died in the past week. No drugs, no alcohol, no guns, no sulphur and no reason for the coroner," Dean leaned back and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. It had been a long drive.

Sam flicked through the pages. All the victims lived alone with no family and not many friends. "Were there any witnesses?"

"One," Dean pulled out the last page from the most recent death. "A neighbour said she saw a stranger in the victim's kitchen. When she blinked, he was gone and the deceased was on the floor." Sam narrowed his eyes and wondered what the stranger looked like. He noted that the last case was only thirty minutes away. "So, whose car are we taking?"

"Dude," Dean smirked. "You ask like there's a choice."

* * *

><p>The young woman was tying back her hair when the door bell rang. She quickly rubbed the smudged mascara from under her eyes and unlocked the front door. The two men stood in front of her and wore cheap black suits. Their smiles eased her fears.<p>

"Good morning, Miss Kenny. My name is Agent Peck. This is my partner Agent Murdock." She watched as they pulled out their badges from their jackets. "We're with the Federal Bureau of Investigation." She nodded slightly and the tall man spoke again. "We're here investigation the death of Mister Parks. We understand you were with him the night he died."

The woman looked from one detective to the other then opened the door fully to allow them inside. They waited in the hall. "I already gave my statement to the cops," she locked the door again and turned to them.

Agent Murdock nodded. "We just want to be thorough, ma'am."

She nodded and asked them to follow her into the living room. She sat opposite them on the couch and smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress. She nervously waited for them to ask her a question. Sam gave a worrying look to Dean then asked her to start from the beginning.

"I only just moved into town," she began. "I thought he was cute, so last night I went over to him and did they whole 'I'm baking a cake and ran out of sugar' routine." She shook her head and wondered why she was telling them this. "He said he didn't know if he had any but said I could help him search in the kitchen. That's when I say him." She looked to Sam. "He was watching Tom walk over to the cupboards." She fell silent. "It was weird. It was like Tom didn't see him at first. It was only after I asked him who he was that he noticed him." She described the man as tall, dark haired and quiet young.

"Did Mister Parks know the guy," Dean asked.

The woman shook her head. "He looked as scared as me. Then... he was dead." She looked away and tucked some hair behind her head.

"What aren't you telling us, Miss Kenny?" Sam noticed she was suddenly getting nervous. Her eyes started darting around the room.

"You'll think I'm crazy," she sighed.

"Believe us," Dean reassured her. "We know crazy and you're definitely not there."

She smiled at the somewhat compliment. "The stranger told me to close my eyes," she bit her lip. "I didn't want to in case... but Tom said it was a good idea because he didn't want me to get hurt." Sam asked what happened next. "I closed my eyes," she raised a shoulder. "Then there was a flash of light and when I opened them, the guy was gone and Tom was...," she licked her lips and looked out the window. "It was my friends who dared me to go over to him. They said they were watching me from when I entered the house to when I came out." Sam looked out the window too. Tom's house was directly across from hers. "They didn't see any light," she sniffed quickly.

Sam followed his brother out to the car and rested his arms on its roof as Dean opened the car door. "Hey, if I asked you where you keep your sugar, where would you look?"

Dean rested his arm on the roof and thought about the answer. "I'd look over the sink beside the coffee, why?"

Sam sighed. "Tom lived in that house for close to five years, yet he had to ask her inside to help him look for it. Surely, he'd know if he had sugar or not."

"You know what's weirder?" Dean asked. "I took a look in the kitchen & there was black dirt etched on the floor like there was a fire. Whatever that light was, it was strong enough to burn the tiles but not hurt the lady."

* * *

><p>He watched his brother lay out the dirty burger and greasy fries on the table in front of him. "This is the only thing I miss about being on the road with you, Sammy," he groaned as he tore a bite out of the burger. He held up a handful of onions. "Look at these... fried to perfection," he smiled as he ducked his head under and sucked them into his mouth. He groaned again.<p>

Sam smiled and shook his head. "Dude, watching you eat is turning me off my food."

Dean shrugged. "Well, if you don't want it…" But Sam put his hand on this burger and pulled it towards him. He hadn't eaten all day and was starving. Dean wiped the grease away from his mouth with the back of his hand and asked was there any light in the case. "No pun intended." His brother put down the burger and rubbed his hands together. He tapped his fingers on his laptop and shook his head. "They have nothing in common, that I can see."

"Except they're loners," Dean interrupted.

Sam sighed. "We'll, no actually, not until recently anyway. The first victim, Hank Smyth, was coach of the local football club. The second, Alice Townsend, was recently divorced and Tom Parks just broke up with a long term girlfriend."

Dean waited for his brother to tear a bite. "You know if you want to sit this one out..."

"Hell no," Sam shook his head. "You're not going to have all the fun."


	26. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 2

**Part 2**

The two men walked into the completely empty bar. Sam had noticed that all three cases occurred along the same route and seemed to be heading south. They decided to follow suit. Their first stop was a small town that contained only a shop, hairdressers, a sheriff's office and a bar. The bar man was polishing glasses that had just been washed.

"Quiet night?" Dean leaned on the counter and ordered a shot of whiskey.

The bar man gave a muffled laugh. "Two local kids just got engaged. They're having a party at their house tonight."

"And everyone's invited?" he threw the drink back the shot.

"It's a small town," the man shrugged picking up another glass. "Of course, I suppose Bob won't be going to it."

"Who's Bob?" both men asked and glanced at each other.

The bar man nodded up the street. "Bob Ewell. He's lived here nearly ten years and until recently he was in practically the town gossip. Now, he's just a loner. He mainly keeps himself to himself." Sam turned to Dean and shrugged. It was their first possible lead.

* * *

><p>Dean stopped the car in front of the house. It was in darkness except for one small reading light in the front room. They both stepped out and quietly closed the doors behind them. Sam went to the boot and took out two shotguns giving one to his brother. They nodded to each other and quickly swept the inside of the house. Nothing was disturbed and everything was immaculate. They came out the back door at the same time. "Maybe this is a dead end," Dean whispered. "He could have gone to the engagement party for all we know."<p>

But Sam's eyes were elsewhere and Dean followed his gaze. About a hundred metres from them was a large wooden hay barn. The front door was hanging open and as they got closer, they could hear hushed voices coming from inside.

Dean entered from the front. The first thing he saw was a grey haired man lying on his back on the ground. The second thing he saw was a thin young man standing over him.

The young man looked up and smiled. "Dean Winchester," the words quietly left his mouth. "Out of all the hunters to follow me, I didn't think it'd be you."

Dean lowered his gun and narrowed his eyes. The man was tall but young. Dean guessed him to be in his late teens. His features were dark and not recognisable. "I'm sorry. Do we know each other?"

The man stepped away from the now cold body and smirked. "We've met each other once or twice before," he nodded. "To be honest, I thought you'd make an exception with me."

Dean raised his gun in front of him again and steadied his aim. He cocked his head. "Well if you really did know me, you'd know I never make exceptions especially when it comes to the killing of innocent people."

The man laughed. "That's funny, Dean. I forgot how funny you are."

"So, how about you refresh my memory before I kill you? How do we know each other again?"

The man had barely opened his mouth when he could hear breathing behind him. He turned just as Sam raised a penknife in the air. The man grabbed it by the blade and pulled it away cutting his hand in the process. He then hit Sam in the chest with an open fist shoving him deep into the high hay stack. Dean threw his arms around the man's neck but was thrown over his shoulders. The wind was knocked out of him as he hit the floor hard. He saw the man quickly look over his shoulder then suddenly disappear into thin air.

The barn door swung open and Dean heard heels rush inside. He turned on his side and rolled around onto his stomach. Then, using his hands, he pushed himself up on his knees. "Dean? What the hell are you doing here?" a female stood in front of him. Dean turned his head and looked to her brown soft pumps. His eyes then followed up her tight skinny jeans and up to a face that he recognised immediately. She looked older than he remembered but still the same. "Are you working this case too?" he pulled himself up on his knees and brushed the dirt away from his hands. Sam slid down the hay stack and nodded a hello to Stacy.

"Are you guys okay?" she smiled at him. He nodded and rubbed his chest. She could tell he was lying but her attention was taken away when she heard the whispers behind her. The butterflies in her stomach immediately told her what was coming next. She looked back to the two men who were now slowly trying to get to their feet. There wasn't enough time to explain to them what was about to happen. "Turn around and close your ears," she ordered.

Dean and Sam looked at each other and back to her.

"Shut your eyes and close your ears now," she said again.

"Why?" Sam asked slowly.

"Just do it," she shouted and they reluctantly complied.

The door swung open and a gust of wind blew in. "Use your quiet voice," she told the empty space. "They can't hear you." A flash of blinding white light engulfed the room and as quickly as it appeared, it was gone.

* * *

><p>"Ever since I first met Raphael," she told Dean after he asked how long she's been able to see an angel's true form. "Or maybe I could see them before that but just didn't know what to look for."<p>

They sat in front of her in a small motel room that reminded her of their first meeting. Only this time, Dean was nursing a sore arm and Sam had some bruised ribs. "So, what do they really look like?" Sam wondered and she smiled.

"You know those pictures that show angels in long flowing white gowns and beautiful white wings?" She waited for him to nod. "We'll, they're the complete opposite of that." She remembered seeing her first angel. He was black as the night and had a rottweiler head that drooled when it spoke. She told them she could see hell hounds and even told them that when angels are in their vessels, she can see a light surrounding them. "It seems the longer they hang around earth, the weaker their light is. Cas used to have a weak light but he brightened up when he got his grace back."

She shook her head. "There's thousands of them... just standing there... watching us. After Raphael came to me, I went up to as many I could see asking them for help... but they all said they couldn't interfere unless they were given a direct order." Sam watched her stare off into the distance. "So much for angels answering your prayers."

Dean stood and threw his towel against the wall. Sam and Stacy glanced at each other. They could both tell he was angry and knew why. "Dean," his brother tried to calm him, "knowing this wouldn't have changed anything. Even if we could see angels or hell hounds before they came, her abilities weren't strong enough to take them on her own. She was just as human as the rest of us."

The older brother turned about, his jaw clenched and his hands gripping his hips tightly. "Is there anything else you want to get off your chest before we finish off this case?" he growled.

She looked at him under his eyes and rolled her shoulders back. Sam cocked his head when she sighed. He knew she was hiding something. "That guy you're chasing?" she took a deep breath in before speaking again. "It's my son, Connor."

Dean cocked his head. "What?"

"Yeah," she joked. "He's going through a rough time with puberty."


	27. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 3

**Part 3**

Their jaws dropped in shock and it was a while before either of them spoke. "When... how...?" Sam was barely able to say.

Stacy shrugged. "It started when he was around thirteen. It came gradually so we were able to go through each one together."

Dean was confused. "You took him hunting?"

She shook her head. "God no, I haven't hunted the supernatural in nearly four years. I stopped not long after... Bobby died," she raised a shoulder. "The closest thing I've got to hunting is rabbit on camping trips. I was always open with him regarding my hunting days, though. Anything he asked me, I told him." They asked her what changed. She turned away and looked towards the door. Her only escape route. "I told him of the existence of angels," she gulped. "Thankfully, he hasn't figured out how to teleport outside a fifty miles radius, so I can still follow him when he jumps."

Sam asked her why she had to chase him in the first place and why not let him try hunting on his own. "She's not following him," Dean interrupted with a realisation. The bright light in the barn, the order to shut their eyes and close their ears... all the pieces were falling into place for him. "She's protecting him from the angels who are chasing him."

She nodded. "There's about three of them... so far. I still remember a couple of Espian spells when they get too close for comfort but Connor jumps around so often, the spell wears off quicker than they should. I don't want him to end up with the same story as me. Of course," she leaned back in her chair, "I don't know whether they want to kill him or be him." She asked them to stop chasing her son but Dean said they couldn't allow him to continue killing people. Stacy smirked and shook her head. "And how are you planning to stop him?"

"We already got him once. Sam got him in the hand."

"You really think it's going to be as easy next time?" Stacy huffed. "He knows your scent now. He can smell you a mile off." Dean asked if she could help them cover their scent. She narrowed her eyes. "I'm not going to help you stop him."

"So, you're alright with him killing innocent people?" Sam couldn't believe it.

"They weren't exactly innocent, Sam," she stood in front of the window and looked through the viol curtains. "They were all angels. Turns out, he can see them too." She turned back to them. "Somehow, he's figured out a way to remove the angel from the vessel. I don't believe it's his intention to kill the vessel as well."

Sam asked where Connor was now.

"Back at the house, probably." Cas' protection spell was still on their home. It's the only place the angels can't track him back to. "But they're not dumb. It's only a matter of time before they set a trap for him."

A realisation suddenly dawned on Dean. He wondered how she could follow Connor so fast. She didn't follow them to the motel. She rode in the back seat. "When did you get your abilities back?" he asked.

Sam's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as he turned to her. Stacy looked away and cleared her throat. "About two years ago," she walked to the centre of the room and stood behind her chair. "Cas is so busy upstairs, he hasn't even noticed," a smile appeared in the corner of her mouth and quickly disappeared.

"Then why don't you use your mojo to stop him?" She told Dean she didn't want to draw any unwanted attention to herself. Dean laughed. "That's some great mothering skills, there."

Stacy cocked her head. "Cas knows where we live. If he figures out I have my abilities back, he could remove the protection spell and every other angel out there will be on our asses."

Dean stepped towards her so that only the chair separated them. "Who are you more afraid of, him or us? Because you know we won't just walk away from this," he whispered angrily.

She shook her head. "Don't make me stop you."

He narrowed his eyes. "What are you going to do? Teleport us away somewhere?"

"And I'll even be nice about it," she smiled. "I'll throw in a free t-shirt."

Sam finally intervened and pushed them apart. "You're both as bad as each other, you know that?" he sighed.

_He started it,_ she thought but Dean said it first.

"Stop it Dean," Sam snapped. "You're as bad as your kids."

"Kids?" she asked with a laugh. "As in plural?"

Sam nodded revealing Dean had one of each. "Twins, aged four years old." He watched her face soften. "I just had my second girl, Mary Elizabeth."

She flashed him a white smile. "Then shouldn't you be at home with them instead of being in this dump?" she looked around the mouldy motel room.

Both men looked at each other. "We only come together when the danger gets a little too close for comfort," Dean revealed.

"You know you have to stop him," Sam warned her after a heavy sigh. "Even if it does means you have to reveal your powers again."

She dropped her head. "Yeah, I know," she mumbled not wanting to admit defeat. The longer the chase lasted, the more dangerous it got. And she knew she couldn't hide from the angels forever.

Dean was glad they had finally gotten through to her and tried to lighten the mood. "So, what kind of t-shirt are we getting?"

* * *

><p>The young man washed the blood off his hands and threw the tea towel on the table. He took out one slice of bread. He covered one half with peanut butter and the other half with strawberry jelly. Then he folded it over and stuffed a corner into his mouth. A creak from the hall made him swallow it quickly. It was the one floor board he knew to avoid whenever he came home after curfew. He looked out of the kitchen. The hall was empty. He knew his mother was still asleep upstairs and his uncle Harry was visiting his sister, so he should have been alone. He stepped into the living room and was faced with the two men he had met earlier. Immediately, he recognised them from his childhood. One had a shorter hair cut but other than that, neither of them had changed much.<p>

He cocked his head and wondered how they had gotten inside the house without him sensing it. He also wondered how they had found him so quickly. There was another creak in the hall. Connor shot a confused look. "Mom?"

His mother stepped between the two men. Her face was torn between fear and worry. Connor took another bit and smiled. "I should have figured you guys would tell on me."

Both men watched as Stacy crossed the room and leaned on the back on the couch. "Just because you don't step on the floor boards, doesn't mean I don't know where you are," she simply said.

Connor gulped hard.

"Let's get down to business, shall we?" Dean was eager to get started. "How did you figure out how to kill angels? Where did you get the spell from?"

"I got it from the internet," Connor joked. "You should try it sometime. It's a new thing the young people use."

"Jesus Christ," Stacy dropped her head in her hands. "It's like history's repeating itself." She remembered telling the same thing to Castiel when he asked her where she got the Espian spells to subdue Raphael.

"Look," Sam tried to reason with him. "We know you had to get it from somewhere. Was it Alastair who gave it to you?"

"How do you know I didn't figure it out myself?"

"Because," Dean grunted, "we know your mother and whatever she can't do, you can't do either."

Connor stammered and looked from the man to his mother and back again.

"How do think we got here so fast?" Dean smiled. "Or how you couldn't sense us in the house? How 'bout you try leaving and see how far you get?"

"That's enough," Stacy stopped him holding her hand out. This wasn't the way she intended telling her son that everything he could do she could do better. It broke her heart seeing the hurt in his eyes.

* * *

><p>Connor watched Dean rumble through his personal belongings from the door way. He already told him he wouldn't find anything but was glad his mother wasn't the one searching especially when Dean discovered the skin magazines under the mattress.<p>

"Dude," Dean smiled holding up a few. "Nice choices!" He looked up when the boy sighed and reluctantly strolled into the room. "You know this would be a lot easier if you just told us the demon's name."

"I don't regret what I did," Connor told him.

"You should," Dean continued upturning the room. "Angels may be douche bags but they're powerful douche bags."

"Are you saying that if you could you wouldn't send them back to heaven?" Connor wondered. "Mom told me what they wanted to do to her and what they tried to do to you guys. They wanted to destroy the world…" he quietened his rant. "I'm sick of trying to be normal. The kids at school think I'm normal and they kick me for it. In the real world, I'm a freak but in the supernatural world I can be whoever I want to be."

Dean smirked. "Well, getting on the angel's most wanted list isn't the best way to start."

Connor cocked his head and narrowed his eyes. Dean asked him what was wrong. "Mom just ordered me to stay in my room."


	28. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 4

**AN: **Sorry if it seems like I'm flying through this. It has to be the easiest story to write. Hope you're liking it.

* * *

><p><strong>Part 4<strong>

Sam and Stacy were at the dining room table. Stacy reluctantly allowed Dean to invade her son's room. Since Connor didn't want to willingly give the name of his seller, their only option was to search his personals. She told Sam that Connor loved to write short stories and maybe there could be something within them.

They started with the most recent stories. Some of them were about girls at school while others were about demons and vampires. Stacy hated the thought of invading his privacy but with little to go on and as he wouldn't let her read his mind, this was all they had.

Sam turned over another page. He was reading about a female vampire slayer in the 1950s. "I know this might sound silly," he looked up. "But can't you just go back in time and change all this?"

Stacy was reading a story about werewolves. The description was so real, she had to assume Harry had filled him in on all the details. "Well, like I told you before, I don't know how to do that and even if I could, time is irrelevant to angels. Even if I did change his time line, angles would have seen it as a possibility and we'd still be screwed."

They both turned back to their stories. Stacy shyly glanced at him. She missed their friendship. All those promises that were made to see each other were broken when Bobby died. She quietly thanked him for helping her.

"Don't thank me yet." He held up a sheet and folded it over. "I think I've found something."

"It's too late."

Dean ran into the room just as Sam was asking the stranger who he was. "It's Cas," Dean answered on his behalf. "His last body was in a train wreck a few years ago… literally."

Stacy looked back at the new Castiel. He was taller now, with dirty blonde hair and wore a Hawaiian shirt and black leather jacket.

"When I heard my brothers were being killed, I thought there was a new demon in town. But when I heard a seventeen year old boy was appearing and disappearing at will, I only came to one conclusion."

"Okay, let's not be over dramatic about this," Dean tried to diffuse the tension. "He's not literally killing them. He's just sending them back the heaven."

"Somehow, he's learned to convert the dagger into words," Cas looked from Dean to Stacy. Stacy narrowed her eyes and looked to Sam. He knew what she was asking and he didn't know the answer. He never met any demon who could kill an angel with words. Cas asked for the boy as politely as he could. "Where is he?"

"You can't take him," she said still looking at Sam. Her voice was calm.

Cas tried searching the house for him but found it difficult. He cocked his head. "You have a shadow over him," he said when realised she had acquired her abilities again. "I should have killed you when I had the chance."

Stacy looked over to him and shook her head. She pleaded with him to have mercy.

"How 'bout we make a compromise?" Dean tried. "Give us forty eight hours to find the demon that gave him this spell and we'll…"

"No," Cas interrupted. "Give me Connor or I'll lift the shadow from this house and we'll all take him."

Stacy waved her hand in the air and slapped it against her other hand. In an instant, Cas was gone. Dean quickly stepped over the spot where Cas had stood and gave her a shocked look. She looked up at Sam with wide eyes. "I'm sorry. I panicked!"

Sam shook his head. "Where did you send him?"

She shrugged a shoulder and gave a weak smile. "Dean mentioned a train wreck and that was the only thing I could think of." She looked to Dean.

Dean closed his mouth and raised his eyebrows. "Well, it'll take him a while to find another vessel… let's start searching for this demon." He stepped towards the table, picked up a book and started flicking through the pages. Stacy went back to her werewolf story, glancing through it franticly. Dean glanced up at Sam as he reached for another story. "Have you given up already, Sammy?" he asked.

But Sam shook his head. "I think I've already found something," he paused. "But you're not going to like it." He looked from one to the other.

Dean told him to spit it out.

Sam held up the folded page and licked his lips before reading. "The slayer headed home after a long night of death. Her mentor was waiting for her when she opened the door and handed her another case. She was a small woman…" Sam swallowed hard before continuing. "Helena was a small woman with large black eyes and grey straw like hair…"

"Son of a bitch," Stacy whispered as her legs went weak. Dean caught her just before she fell to the ground. He placed her back in the chair and tried telling her it was just a story. But she grabbed his arm and stared into his eyes. "I never told him her name," her body began to shake. "I know he sometimes dreams about her killing his parents but I never told him her name."

"It's okay," Sam reassured her. "Maybe Harry told him." She shook her head. "He could have slipped it out by mistake."

Dean agreed with his brother. "We'll call him and ask," he helped her nod. "It's just a story," he tried to make her smile.

* * *

><p>Stacy hung up the phone after their conversation. She told Harry she was considering telling Connor about the sorceress and wondered had he told him anything. She didn't like the reply he gave her. She sat down beside the phone and crossed her arm over her stomach. "I think I'm going to be physically sick."<p>

"If it's any consolation," Sam looked at the sheets sprawled over the table. "It looks like she's only appeared in the one story."

Stacy shook her head. "I thought I brought him up in an environment where he could tell me everything."

"You're his mother, not his best friend," Dean told her bluntly. "For instance, I'm sure he didn't tell you about a girl named Alison he clearly has the hots for." He had spotted her name in three stories, so far.

"I can kill Castiel, if you want," the young man appeared in the room. He waited in his bed room as long as he could and only caught the end of the conversation. He wasn't expecting them to burst into fits of laughter. "What? I can do it. It's easy."

"It's not that," Sam was the first to catch his breath. "It's just... killing Cas would be the worst decision you could possible make."

"Yeah," Dean wiped the tears from his eyes. It had been a long time since dreaded fear had caused him to laugh so hard. "He's basically stopping God himself from reaching down and squashing you like a bug."

Stacy breathed calm into her lungs and rested her arm on the table. "There's a woman you've written as the mentor for your Brittney the vampire slayer story," she tilted her head. "When was the last time you saw her?"

Connor shrugged. "I don't know what you're talking about. She's a fictional character!"

"That's not true and I'm not talking about the time when you were a child," she replied. "I never told you her name which means she must have told you herself. I know you didn't get her from my thoughts. So, tell me the truth."

Her voice was so relaxing he didn't know how to read her. Was she angry or scared? _Or maybe_, Connor thought, _this was what disappointment sounded like_. "The last time was ten days ago," he dropped his head.

_Just before the killings started_, Sam thought.

"What'd I tell you about taking things from strangers," Stacy almost joked.

"She said she knew you," Connor said. "She said you wouldn't be upset because you wanted the angels dead too."

Dean shook his head. "So much for forty eight hours," he stood up and stepped beside Stacy. "The last time we tried to kill her we just had to wait for you to wake up."

She puffed out a laugh and told Connor to inform them next time he'd dream about her.

"Dream? No, I didn't dream about her!"

All three looked at him and narrowed their eyes.

"I assure you," he turned to Dean. "I don't sleep walk. I've met her a total of three times and they were all in the football field at the back of the school." He turned to Sam. "I'm not lying. Ask my friend Karl. He's seen me talk to her."

Dean raised his hand. "Can I speak out loud for a second?" He turned to Stacy and asked how it was possible. "She's thousands of years old. Even Cas said she was dead."

Stacy shook her head. "Then it can't be her." She looked to Sam and told him to go to the school. "Check for EMF readings and sulphur." She looked to Dean and told him to take Connor with them. "He'll show you where he met her." Dean was reluctant but she told him not to worry. "You'll be protected and if things get too hairy, Connor will bring you back here faster than your car."

Sam asked what she was going to do. She raised an eyebrow and smiled. "I'm going to light a couple of candles."


	29. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 5

**Part 5**

She pulled open the heavy wooden door and stepped into the church. It was an hour long drive but she hoped it was worth it. She raised her head to the high ceiling and the stained glass windows depicting angels. The walls were covered in paintings of the bible and statues of holy figures stood all around her. She walked past the stand of candles and sat in the second last row. She watched as a priest and an old woman exited the confession box. He held her hand for an exceptionally long time then placed his hand on her shoulders as she left to sit down. Stacy creaked as she leaned forward and placed her hands on the back of the bench in front of her pretending to pray. She hardly went to Sunday mass but, in the past, she was a regular visitor to this church. The priest saw her and immediately became nervous. He swiftly walked down the aisle to her. His footsteps made the slightest of noises. He folded his hands in front of him.

"I'm afraid, my child, you haven't come at a good time," he apologized. "There's been a death amongst the parishioners and Sister Bernadette was sent to visit the grieving family."

"That's okay," she smiled up at him. "You'll do fine."

He old pries nodded once and held out his hand for her to follow him. He led her up the aisle and passed the confession box. She followed him up the steps of the Alter and through to the back. They went into his office. As he sat down at his desk, she closed the door behind them and turned the key ensuring no one would follow them.

"You shouldn't be here," he quickly tidied his desk and directed her to the chair opposite. Her opened a drawer and threw everything inside leaving only a bible and a notepad behind.

"Neither should you," she sat down on the small leather chair. She noticed the wooden handles were worn down by people's hands.

He looked away nervously. "If anyone finds me talking to you…"

"I won't tell if you won't," she smiled.

He sighed. "You should really be talking to Sister Bernadette. She knows you better. She'll be here tomorrow, if you want to come back."

"It'll be too late then," Stacy pulled at a thread that was falling from the seams of the leather chair.

They sat there in silence for a moment. The priest moved some pencils from one side of the table to the other and put his notepad in another drawer. "The same destiny ultimately awaits everyone, whether they are righteous or wicked, good or bad," he leaned forward in his chair and rested his hands on the table. "Good people receive the same treatment as sinners, and people who take oaths are treated like people who don't."

"As depressing as that sentiment is," she smirked. "You're preaching the bible to the wrong choir."

He then bluntly asked what she wanted.

"I want you to pass on a message for me."

The priest shook his head. "How do you know they'll want to listen?"

"Because," she leaned forward and smiled, "I've got something they want."

* * *

><p>They arrived at the school close to nine at night. Unfortunately the football field was still in use. Connor told them there was a game coming up and they were getting all the practice they could get. Dean was eager to start searching, so he took the EMF reader from Sam and broke into the school. Sam and Connor waited on the benches for the field to empty. The team of thirty strong began jogging around the field.<p>

"She didn't look that scary," Connor finally spoke.

Sam shrugged knowing he was talking about the sorceress. "Appearances can be deceiving, I guess." Thankfully, he had never had the pleasure of meeting her. He knew what she looked like from pictures and Stacy's descriptions. He had to use his imagination for the rest.

The team had covered half the pitch when Connor spoke again. "How strong is she?"

Sam looked back at him. The boy was sitting one row behind him. He wasn't sure how much truth he was allowed to divulge. "She's so strong that you mom had a panic attack when she found out she was back."

Connor was slightly surprised. That wasn't the impression he got at all from his mother. She seemed so calm. "No, I mean how strong is my mother?"

Sam looked back to the field. The team had finished their jog and was doing some mild stretches. "I don't know," he sighed. "When she got to her full strength the angels took them away from her before she could exercise any of them."

Connor wondered if the angel's fear of Stacy was greater than hers of them. He asked did they ever hunt together in the past. Sam said they had a few cases together. "So why'd she stop? Was it because of me?"

Again, Sam wondered how much he could tell. "No, it wasn't because of you. She stopped after Bobby Singer died." The case involved hunting down zombies. When Bobby's body was ripped to shreds by one of them, Stacy blamed herself. She said she had dreamt of his death and blamed herself for not preventing it. "His death hit us all hard."

His memories slipped back to that night. It was supposed to be a simple case but it turned out to be an ambush. When they found Bobby, Stacy was leaning over him screaming at him to wake up. Dean struggled to hold her back when help arrived. At the hospital, when the doctor told them what they already knew, she clung tightly onto Dean. The next few days passed in a blur. They spent hours on the couch just staring into nothing. Every so often, Dean would drop his arm around her shoulders and when she slipped towards him, he would kiss the top of her head. If she started to cry, he would hold her tightly until she stopped or fell asleep. Then, one morning before the sun woke up, she disappeared cutting off all communication. Sam wiped his face with his hand. Even after all this time, he still got a lump in his throat when he thought of him.

* * *

><p>Stacy got back to the house close to midnight. She pulled her Lincoln up alongside the Impala and rushed inside. The three men were in the front room sharing past cases. "How long have you guys been home?" she asked throwing her keys on the side table.<p>

"About two hours," Sam replied turning around.

Dean stood up when she asked did they find anything. "I thought I smelt sulphur until I realised I was passing the chemistry lab." His eyes flashed a smile.

Connor stood up only when Sam did. "What's wrong?" he asked noticing her nervously glance toward the window.

"It's not just angles who want Connor," she sighed. "It looks like demons got a whiff of what's happening and wants first pickings. I've been out of the loop so long I didn't notice the two following me until I was too close to the house." Connor gave a Sam a worried look. "Of course, there were three waiting outside when I arrived so they must have followed you guys. So much for Cas's cloak."

Sam asked did she know anything that would get rid of them quickly. "Yeah, but it's kinda bright. I might attract the wrong attention."

"Then we'll fight the old fashioned way," Dean declared pulling the knife out of his jacket.

Stacy looked to Connor and told him to go to his room. "I'll call when it's safe to come down."

"No," Connor was scared. "Let me help. I can help." She looked to Sam who duly obeyed her order.

When Connor was about to be locked in his room, he finally spoke. "She's never been out of the loop," he declared. "She knew she was being followed. She led them here. She wants me to be captured."

Sam quickly looked down the hall and closed himself in the room with the young man. "You've got to stop thinking like this. Your conspiracy theories are scaring you more than what's actually chasing you. We're here to help you, all of us, especially your mother. Whatever fears you have about her, get them out of your head before you do something that will get yourself, if not all of us, killed!"

* * *

><p>Dean wiped his bloody hand on the shirt of one of the demons. The fight had been surprisingly quick. Dean and Sam held the demons back while Stacy exorcised them. When she got knocked down, Sam took over. "We can't stay here," Dean held out his hand to Stacy and helped her up. "It's too dangerous now that demons know you're here."<p>

"I know a church nearby we can hide out tonight," she thought.

Sam was slightly reluctant. "Isn't that... kind of like… sending out a beacon?"

Stacy wiped the blood away from her lip and joked. "You'd be surprised how little time God has for churches."

* * *

><p>Dean pulled the car in front of the white painted stone church. The windows were dark and the streets were empty. Sam checked the front door and announced it was locked. He pulled his kit from his inside pocket and ducked to start work on the lock. But Stacy put one hand on the handle and with a little magic, she opened the doors. Dean's jaw dropped. "You have got to show me how to do that," he said following her inside.<p>

Stacy found the light switch and brightened the aisles. Dean asked her how often she'd been there noting how quickly she found the switch in the darkness. "Once or twice," she smiled.

"Do you smell that?" Sam raised his nose in the air.

"Sulphur?" Dean wondered if there was going to be another fight on their hands.

But when Sam turned round, his eyes were fearful and his face drained. "No, it's blood!"

They followed Stacy as she quickly pushed passed them and ran up the aisle. She jumped the steps of the Alter and through the back door, down a narrow hall and into the back room. As she pushed open the door, a gust of wind blew passed her. The office was completely destroyed. The table and shelves still sizzled in their charred remains. The wall behind the desk was gone as well as the back of the church. Even the trees behind the church were burnt.

"What the…? What did this?" Sam stepped over books and roof slates. "Was it a twister?"

"How many twisters do you know that only take out half of a building," Dean grumbled stepping into the room after him. "Anyway, there haven't been any twisters recorded in these parts before." He looked at the debris under his feet. "I don't what could have done this."

"It was angels," Stacy still held the handle tightly. She was afraid that if she let go, she would collapse.

"Are you sure?" Sam asked. "How do you know?"

But before he got an answer Dean called them over. He had found a body of a man and noted his white color. He reached out for a pulse but the way the body was contorted, he knew he wasn't going to find one. Connor found a body too, a female. Her legs were trapped under a roof beam and her head was back to front.

"It's Father O'Brien and Sister Bernadette," Stacy revealed. "I came here earlier… and spoke to him…" Her legs felt weak. _They didn't even know anything_, she thought.

Sam apologised and asked were they friends of hers.

"Not exactly," she sighed and turned to leave. She wanted to get away from the smell. "They were angels."


	30. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 6

**Part 6**

He led them through the doors of the pub. "Dean," she sighed, "we don't have time to..."

"Sit," he ordered pointing to the line of stools under the bar. It was close to closing time but the place was still full. There was a group of girls in a corner at the back celebrating an event of some kind.

She looked to Sam who nodded and showed her to the far stool. Dean ordered three neat whiskeys and a bottle of pop. "Actually," he changed his mind. "Make that a beer." He looked to Connor and gave a wink and a smile.

Sam asked what Stacy had in mind to do next.

"Oh, I don't know," she held the glass in both hands and thought about chucking it back in one mouthful. "I was thinking of ditching you guys and going our own way."

Connor held on his bottle of beer tightly avoiding the questioning look from the bartender. It was cold and fresh, not at all like the ones he shared with his friends. He wanted to savour every mouthful, every taste, every drop. When he woke from his trance, Dean was agreeing with his mother to part ways. "No," Connor yelled immediately grabbing everyone's attention. Stacy even did a double take, only noticing his illegal drinking now. He didn't want to be left alone with his mother. He was still unsure about her. He liked having Sam and Dean around. He liked that they treated him like one of the boys and not like a child as his uncle Harry did. "If the angels find you, they'll kill you whether you know anything or not just like the priest and the nun. It's too dangerous to separate now."

Sam nodded in thought. He didn't want to leave his wife and children especially not while they were so young. "He's right," he concluded. "I don't particularly want to die tonight."

* * *

><p>They checked into a local motel, each paying for two rooms beside each other. "So," Sam threw his bag on the furthest of the double beds. "What's the plan?"<p>

Both Stacy and Dean looked at each other and shrugged. "We could try to get some sleep," Dean suggested. Stacy nodded. "I agree. After that I think our best plan is to try to get Helena out into the open somehow. She's only showing herself to Connor right now, so we could use that in some way to our advantage."

"I know what you're going to do and you're not going to do it!" Connor suddenly shouted. "I'm not going to let you. No matter what you say, I'm not going to go with you." He stormed out the motel room and banged the door behind him.

Stacy narrowed her eyes and looked to Dean. "What the hell was that about?"

Sam sighed. "He thinks you're going to hand him over to the angels."

Her jaw dropped. "Say what now?"

Sam's arms were crossed over his chest and he was leaning back on the table. "When we were at the football field, he said in the past, whenever he got into trouble, you'd make him face the punishment no matter what it was."

"Yeah, but these are angels!" Dean was just as shocked. "It's not like detention at school. This is actual death!"

Stacy nodded in agreement and looked back to the young Winchester. "Why would he think that? What did you say to him?"

"Nothing," Sam uncrossed his arms. "He was thinking that long before I came along."

"But I'm his mother," she raised her hands out. "Who does he think I am?"

"You mean apart from a powerful witch that all the angels are scared of?" Sam mumbled loud enough for her to hear him.

Stacy's face softened and she sighed. She suddenly realised she probably should have been more honest with her son. _Talking to him calmly probably freaked him out even more_, she thought.

"Do you want me to talk to him?" Sam offered.

"No," she sulked and followed Connor out to the next room.

Dean raised an eyebrow and shared a look with Sam. "And we thought we had parenting problems."

* * *

><p>When she entered the room, he was sitting at the top of their bed. His knees were tightly tucked under his chin. <em>Don't touch me,<em> she could hear him say but she sat on the bed anyway.

"Remember when you were thirteen years old," she began, "I brought you into your room and told you about the changes that were going to happen to you."

He nodded. "You told me about spells and the abilities I had."

She nodded and thought back. "They actually started a lot earlier than that," she sighed and tilted her head. "When you were about eleven, you fell off your bike and cut your knee badly. There was so much blood... I was surprised you had any left. When I went over to you, you had you hand over your knee and you had stopped crying. I cleaned you up but I couldn't find a cut or a scratch on you." She looked up at him. "You had healed yourself."

He loosened the tight grip he had around his legs.

"You're a lot more powerful than you think," she disclosed.

"More powerful than you?"

"Maybe," she shrugged. She needed Helena's help to access her abilities. The fact that Connor seemed to have tapped into them without any help, slightly bothered her. "But the fact that you would take a spell from a stranger and carry it out without knowing the full consequences scares the hell out of me."

Connor dropped his knees and apologised. "But after you told me what they did to you, I wanted revenge."

She nodded and thanked him with a smile. "I understand that you're scared and I shouldn't be that surprised that some of that fear is directed towards me but you have to know that I would do everything to protect you. I love you more than... anything in the world and I would kill anyone that would try to hurt you," she reached out and put her hand on his. "I can't tell you what's going to happen in the next few days but whatever I say or do, no matter how strange it may seem..."

"I trust you," he blurted out. "You've done this before," he shyly looked up in apology. "I trust you." And before she could say anything, he threw his arms around her neck and held on tightly.

* * *

><p>Stacy stood over Sam and watched him sleep. His body was twisted awkwardly and his eye lids were in rapid movement. The motel room door opened and Dean quietly slipped inside. He carefully placed his bag on the table. Stacy turned and walked up to him.<p>

"I know we're on shifts," she whispered, "but I kinda don't want to wake him."

Dean looked over to where his brother lay in the double bed. Connor was curled up next to him. "Yeah," he nodded. "This is the most sleep he's had in a while and probably the most sleep he'll get for a while. You were lucky," they stood side by side as he opened the bag. "You didn't have to deal with infancy."

Stacy shrugged. She didn't consider it lucky to miss out her son first few years in life.

He rolled out the fold up bag. She had asked him to bring in all his knives from the car. She leaned over them and studied each one carefully. She finally pointed to one. "But it'll need to be sharpened."

Dean told her that wasn't a problem and pulled out a piece of flint. She pulled out another small dagger and handed it to him. "And this as well, just in case." He smiled and took it from her.

She rolled up the bag, fastened it and placed it on the ground under the table. She then took out her gun and began taking it apart on a soft cloth. Guns were going to be useless but there was no harm in cleaning them anyway.

They worked in silence for a while until Stacy broke it. "Can I ask you something?"

He shrugged.

"If I don't make it, would you take care of Connor for me?" she kept her eyes firmly on her gun.

"What are you doing?" he asked without looking up.

"What do you mean, what am I doing? I'm making a verbal will."

He groaned. He didn't want to hear this. "What about Harry?"

"Harry had a mild heart attack last year," she disclosed. "If I told him the whole truth on this, I think he would actually die."

Dean went silent for a long minute. "Well, why me? What can't Sammy do it?"

"Well, Jesus Dean, you don't have to say yes if you don't want to! Anyway," she sighed, "he's nearly eighteen. It's not like you have to take care of him forever. I'm just asking you to watch out for him, is all?"

He groaned again. "Nothing's going to happen to you."

"Dean," she looked up at him. He was still sharpening the small dagger. "We're going to be fighting Coujo with dog biscuits. No one's going to be around for the sequel."

"You defeated her before."

"Yeah," her eyes widened, "and that turned out to be a dream. Anyway, even if I do defeat her I still have a couple of angels that want my head on a plate and I don't think Cas is the forgiving kind."

They both turned to watch Sam kick out his leg, groan and turn over. "Look," Dean leaned over the table, "I'm guessing this little thing isn't going to be used to sharpen pencils," he held up the dagger.

Stacy sighed. "If I tell you the plan... she might hear us."

"Hey, that's fine. I get it. She'll read our minds too quickly anyway," he waved his hand in the air. "But why don't you do the same to the angels. Throw them a curve ball," he whispered. "Give them something they're not expecting. Something they don't think you have the balls to do."

Stacy could list a number of things she was afraid to do. She watched him lean back in his chair and pick up the second dagger. He seemed proud of his answer. _Yes, I am that good_, she could hear him say. She smirked and shook her head. She then rubbed her hand over her face and sighed. "I don't know if I'll be able to protect everyone," her eyes were full of worry. The people in the room were her first priority but what if there were witnesses.

* * *

><p>Connor had offered to go out to the vending machine for some snacks. When Dean's stomach started rumbling, they suddenly realised none of them had a proper meal in hours. Snacks would have to do until the local diner would reopen. He slowly made his way back to the room with a handful of goodies in his hands.<p>

"Hello boy," a voice said behind him.

He turned immediately recognising the voice. His breathing increased and he quickly glanced up to the room door.

"There's no need in calling," the sorceress told him. "No one can hear us."

"You tricked me," Connor spat. "You knew I'd use that spell and you knew the angels would be after me."

The old woman smiled. "We all have to play our parts in whatever challenges that come our way."

"So... this is a test?" the boy wondered remembering what she did with his mother.

The woman nodded. "I have to make sure my successor is worthy of their place."

Connor burst through the door and slammed it behind him. Sam and Stacy were jokingly reminiscing over case they shared. "How was I to know?" Stacy smirked. "I was sleep walking remember." Sam's eyes widened. "Oh, are we still going with that story?" he laughed.

Dean noticed Connor's hands were empty and asked what had happened. "She's here," he stated. "She was here," he told them about the sorceress. Dean went to the window and peeked behind the curtains telling everyone to pack up.

"And go where?" Stacy pulled a road map from her bag and smoothed it on the table. "She's just teleported out of here. We don't even know which direction she's headed."

"And you have a better idea?" Dean threw his arms into his coat.

"I have _an_ idea," she glanced up and asked Connor for his hand. She tore half a page from the newspaper and rolled it into a ball. "Don't worry," she noted his resistance. "It won't hurt, I promise."

She held out her left hand and waited for him to place his hand on top. On his palm, she placed the rolled up paper. She clicked her fingers with her right hand creating a small flame. With her thumb, she moved the flame towards the paper. As it caught fire, she mumbled some words, then covered the flame with her right hand and quenched the light. She turned her hands to the side and rolled the ashes out onto the map. When they had all fallen, they started making tiny jumps like someone was banging their fist on the table. Like jumping ants, they followed each other in a line along the road. She looked up to Dean. "Now, we wait."


	31. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 7

**Part 7**

Outside room 214, the car park light flickered and distinguished. Inside the room, four people stood around a table looking down at a map. Dean noticed the intruders first. "Cas," he nodded. "You're looking well." Castiel was standing in the middle of the room in a new vessel. He was tall, black hair and had a square jaw. Two other angels stood on either side of him.

Stacy turned around with a smile that suddenly disappeared. His vessel was older but was still as handsome as she remembered. "You… you're…" she whispered.

Cas looked down and patted down his new body. "Good, you remember me. I was afraid it wouldn't work."

"Wait," Sam turned to her. "You know his vessel?"

She nodded out of shock. "He... was my first boyfriend." She was fourteen years old when he asked her to go to the movies. After they left the cinema, he held her hand all the way home then kissed her on the front steps. It was her first bit of normality outside of hunting and the thrill excited her.

"Oh I see," Dean nodded. "You think that if you use someone from her past, she's less likely to throw you in front of another train."

Cas nodded. "It seems logical, don't you think?"

"What happened to you man?" Dean shook his head. "You've changed."

Stacy turned away. It was too strange hearing Cas coming from the face she once had loved. He told him their game of tag was over. He told them it was time to do the right thing. "Give us Connor and no one will get hurt."

Connor and his mother shared a look. He saw that her eyes were tired and worn out. She mouthed the words 'I love you' to him and he in nodded in reply. With tears in his eyes, he stepped towards Cas. Sam pleaded with Stacy that they could still fight, but she just looked away. "It is God's wishes," Cas said.

Dean shook his head. "How could God possibly want to hurt a child especially knowing that the sorceress is still alive?"

Stacy raised her head and tilted it slightly. "God doesn't know, does he?"

The two angels behind him glanced at each other. "Of course, he does," Cas replied. "He's all seeing."

"That's impossible," she shook her head with the realisation. "It's the reason why he created so many angels. So, you could do all the seeing for him. Helena's has been a pain in his ass for thousands of years, you said so yourself," the real story was hitting her fast and hard. "Dean's right, if God knew she was alive, he wouldn't be after Connor."

"Well, it's too late now," Cas finally spoke. "It's over." He reached up his hand to place it on Connor's shoulder but his hand went right through him. "You're… not real!" He looked back at her in disbelief. "But… how is it possible? I can feel your presence."

"A magician never reveals their secrets," Connor enjoyed the angels confusion and waved goodbye as he disappeared in front of the angels.

Sam smiled too. "I hate to say this, dude, but you really should have killed her when you had the chance." And he disappeared.

Cas' eyes widened and asked how she was doing it.

Dean stepped beside her and begged to stay a little longer. "Let's mess with their heads a little longer." But she just smiled at him and he disappeared as well.

"You can't keep running from us forever," Cas growled in anger. "You've gained nothing from this charade."

"We've gained a couple of hours on the road plus I've learned that God doesn't hate us as much as I thought he did," she sighed and she stepped towards him. "Go home and tell your daddy the truth and if he still wants Connor then… then so be it. But we're so close to her Cas. Just give us a little more time," she pleaded. But as she blinked, they disappeared too.

* * *

><p>When she awoke, Dean had started up the car again. Connor shoved a bottle of water in her face. "That was cool," he beamed. "Wasn't that cool?" he slapped Sam on the shoulder.<p>

Sam agreed that seeing Cas' face was priceless and laughed. "Why are we so thirsty after it, though?"

Stacy swallowed nearly half the bottle and shrugged. "No idea but it's something I'll have to work on."

"Have you done it before?" Connor was still smiling. The thrill of being involved in one of his mother's spells could be seen all over his face. He was ecstatic.

"Just the once," she smiled back. She projected her image one night she was working late on a case. Harry informed her he had missed his curfew and she sent her image home to ground him. "Never took three people with me though."

Connor sat back content with her answer.

His mother sighed and swallowed hard. "There's just one thing I should tell you before you find out some other way. That vessel Cas has… he was more than just my first boyfriend." She glanced to the front seats. She didn't like how she was telling him this in front of others but was given little choice. "He's also your father."

Connor's face dropped.

"Obviously, I would have liked to tell you about him under better circumstances and this is a shitty way of introducing you to him…" she let her sentence trail off and waited for him to speak.

Dean and Sam glanced at each other and repositioned themselves in the car seats. They suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

"It's okay," Connor finally said. "It's not like I've ever asked about him… I just… never thought about him," he shrugged. "Guess, I can't kill him either," he smiled. Stacy took hold of his hand and squeezed it gently.

Sam wondered if Cas knows his vessel is also Connor's father. "Oh, he knows," Stacy said. "I don't know how, though. I never told anyone who Connor's father was. It's like Cas was able to reach into my head and pull out my thoughts."

But Dean shook his head saying she must have told someone. "Who else knew you were pregnant?"

"I only told John," she shrugged and looked out at the dark night passing them by. "I didn't have anyone else." She thought how pathetic her life was that her only friend at the time was a man who was a friend of her parents. Connor squeezed her hand out of her thoughts and she turned to him. She was thankful, at least, that someone was there with her the day she had to make the hardest decision of her life in giving Connor up for adoption. John had stayed with her for a whole week before he caught the trail of the yellow eyed demon again. She told him to hunt it with his sons and contact her when it was dead. That was the last time she spoke to him.


	32. My boy builds Coffins: Ch 8

**Part 8**

They decided to stop into a diner, not only to stretch their legs but also to answer Dean's grumbling stomach. The brothers sat into the booth first. Stacy and Connor closed them in. A bouncing bubbly blonde waitress arrived at their table and offered them hot coffee and the menus. "Give us a holler when you're ready to order," she grinned slapping some gum in her mouth.

Dean thanked her and looked through the menu. It all looked so good. "We should get something quick. We're not far from where the ashes stopped. Can you sense her at all?"

"Oh yeah," Stacy's eyes widened and she turned over the menu. "I sensed her as soon as we entered the diner."

"Wait… what?" Connor looked up. "You mean she's here in this diner?" His mother nodded.

Sam worrying looked around at the other customers and immediately thought of their safety. "We should start getting everyone out of here?"

"Give me a minute?" she sighed and mumbled something under her breath.

A little girl who was enjoying a bowl of ice cream quietly put down her spoon and slipped off her chair. She calmly walked out of the diner, followed by her brother and mother. Across from them, a man took one bite of his burger, wiped his mouth and left. One by one, each customer stood up and, in a line, silently left the diner. A farmer, with a handlebar mustache, stopped at their table and pulled out a gun from his holster. All four watched him place it on the table. "Not even this can help you now," he said and followed the crowd out the door.

Stacy worryingly looked over at Connor. "Okay, I didn't do that."

"Damn she's good," Sam whispered.

"All right," Dean put his menu down. His stomach would have to wait a little longer. "Let's get this over with."

Sam and Stacy entered the kitchen first. A bald headed man was sitting in the middle of the floor. His hands bound and his mouth taped. His eyes were wide with fear. Connor rushed between them. "Uncle Harry!" he yelled going to his aide, but Stacy held him back saying he wasn't real. "What? How do you know?"

"Nochtann," Stacy ordered the sorceress to reveal herself and swiftly the old man transformed into their blonde haired waitress.

"I find it sweet that you've changed some of my spells to suit you," she smiled. "I may not know what you're saying but," she pointed to her temple, "I know what you're thinking."

"Really?" Stacy took a step forward. "Then why are we here again? Why are still testing me? I thought my last lesson was the final test."

"Oh honey," she tilted her head enjoying her slight Texan twang. "School's never out. No matter how old you are, there's always something new to learn. For instance, facing me with your son and boyfriends is the stupidest thing," she nearly laughed. "I mean, come on. Do you seriously think you can defeat me?"

Stacy looked back to Sam and nodded. He quickly took out a piece of paper from his pocket and opened it up. Connor did the same and read the words carefully. "Ar n-athair, ar n-athair, ar n-athair thuas," all three spoke in unison. Stacy had written the spell phonetically and gave it to them in the car. She made them promise not to read it until she told them to.

The sorceress' eyes narrowed. "You know the power of three is all bullshit."

But their words continued. "Iarraimid ar do maithiunas."

"Enough of this," the sorceress swatted the air in front of her like she was getting rid of a fly. Without warning, both Sam and Connor's bodies were flung in the air and thrown into the wall behind them. Connor hit his head so hard that he was immediately knocked unconscious. Sam bent over in pain. He fell on his knees and began coughing up blood.

Stacy wanted to help but she knew she had to finish the spell. She could have healed Sam as he was being tortured but hoped that with the sorceress' attention in front of her, she wouldn't notice Dean sneak up behind her. Stacy finished the spell as she watched Dean stepping closer to her. She whispered another spell to cover him from Helena's senses.

He was holding the small dagger Stacy had given him. She had covered it with a spell that only required one drop of blood. Dean quickly nicked the sorceress' arm and got what he needed. She turned around and violently threw him away from her. Stacy couldn't see where he landed but judging by the sounds of cracking, she knew all the bones in his hands were broken.

The sorceress held her arm and healed it quickly. "Is that all you've got?" she was slightly disappointed. "I expected more from you."

"I do have one more thing," Stacy gulped and looked to the other man standing beside the stove.

The sorceress turned around with fear in her eyes. "You... you can see me..." she mouthed and tried to leave but somehow she couldn't move. She turned to Stacy not understanding what was happening.

Cas looked to Stacy and thanked her. He then placed his hand on the sorceress' shoulder and was about to leave when Stacy stopped him.

"Wait, I have so many questions to ask."

Cas nodded. "You asked God for help."

"What?" she shrugged not understanding his meaning.

Cas thought back. "You said, please God give me the strength to tell Keith Bradley the truth."

Her lips trembled and her eyes watered. The day after finding out she was pregnant she headed to the church for help. It was one of the few times she prayed to Him.

"God may not have been listening," he told her. "But I was."

* * *

><p>They were back in a motel room again. Connor lay unconscious on the bed while Stacy sat in a chair beside him. Her legs were stretched out in front of her as she waited patiently for him to wake up. Sam was directly opposite her in practically the same position. Dean came in from the bathroom and put the last of his things in his bag. They could have left then and there but they wanted to make sure Connor was alright before going back on the road. He sat down beside his brother and rubbed his now unbroken hands together. He asked what she was planning to do next.<p>

"Find a new place to live, I guess," she straightened up and repositioned the cloth on Connor's forehead. "Our house isn't protected anymore and I still have a few demons on my tail. Harry's sister has offered us a room until we find somewhere permanent."

Dean offered her a lift but then realised his mistake. She could go anywhere in the country with just a thought. She laughed a little. "I'll go back for my car and some bags and head over."

"And what about Helena? You're not worried about her coming back?"

She shook her head. "Nah, I could never have beaten her on a good day. Anyway, she's in God's hands now."

Sam tucked his legs under his chair. "Can I ask you something?"

"Okay," she thought. "But nothing too strenuous, I'm not in the mood to think."

"Would you be Mary Elizabeth's god mother?" he smiled.

"Really?" she was slightly taken back. "Are you sure you want a witch to be her god mother? I'm sure there's a bad fairy tale in there somewhere!"

But Sam said he would be honored. "Plus, after seeing you today I know you'll have no trouble taking care of her if the worst happens."

She gave a girly smile and lifted her shoulders to her ears in excitement. "Aw Sammy, you're making be blush!"

"Speaking of the future," Dean brought them back to the harsh reality. "What does yours look like?"

She knew exactly what he was asking but she couldn't answer him. Images of the future came to her through dreams but she had so many nightmares of what could happen she was now unsure of what would. "Hey, I've defeated Helena and Cas today and I've told God where to go. If Raphael wants a piece of me, I say bring it on."

"You're crazy," Sam shook his head with a smirk.

She extended her hand and smiled. "Hi, my name is crazy. It's nice to meet you."

Both brothers threw their heads back in laughter.

Everyone has a little crazy inside them, she thought as she looked back at Connor. A little bit of evil. Some people let it loose while others keep it hidden. That was the greatest thing about being a hunter. Adrenaline gave no fear and death gave no remorse.

Connor stirred in the bed and moaned himself awake. "Did he come?"

"Did who come, sweetheart?" his mother patted his forehead down and calmly spoke to him.

"The spell," his mouth was dry and his voice hoarse. "You were asking God for help."

Stacy nodded. She knew a revealing spell wouldn't be enough for the angels to see Helena. That's why she needed some blood to ground her and make her visible to everyone but she didn't think Connor would figure it out so quickly.

"Did it work?" he asked with worry in his eyes.

"Yes, it worked," she reassured him with a smile. "He sent Cas."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> **Aww! Okay one more story left and then we can all rest ;)**


	33. Of moons, birds & monsters: Ch 1

**Title: **Of moons, birds and monsters

**Rating:** Teen

**Summary: **A number of deaths in a small town have been ruled as accidental but Dean and Sam know otherwise and go to investigate. Story 6/6

**AN:** So, it's the last story of a long series and what would I do differently? Well, firstly I would have cut it down somehow. Thirty odd chapters are way too long for the mind to handle. There are too many names and back stories to remember. There were times when I just wanted to leave it but then I wanted to see where it would end myself!

Thanks to everyone to stuck with it & put it down as a favourite fic ;) Hope you enjoy this story too.

* * *

><p><strong>Set in 2023<strong>

**Part 1**

The middle aged man swung the sign around on the inside of the door and unlatched the lock. It was just after six and people had already started heading out of the town. He picked his cell phone up from behind the cash register and dialed the familiar number. It rang twice and was answered by a young woman.

"Hey sweetheart, I'm glad I caught you," he smiled. "I'm just locking up now. Will I meet you there?"

"I'm still trying to find my sleeping bag. I'll be another ten minutes," she said offering to meet at the back of the shop.

"That's perfect. I still have to clean up the machines anyway. I'll see you at the back in ten." He hung up and slipped his cell phone in his back pocket. He grabbed a bucket and filled it with hot water, squirting a little washing up liquid inside. Then he dropped the mop in and washed the floor thoroughly. He removed all the meats from the shelves and placed them in the large fridge, closing the latch on the heavy door after. He cleaned out the mixer and the slicing machine and switched them both off. He then reached behind the curtain to switch off the lights noting that he still had a few minutes to wait for his daughter to arrive.

As he was about the leave through the back door, a humming noise caught his attention. He switched back on the lights and checked the shop again. The blade of the slicing machine was turning violently. He reached behind the machine and turned it off again assuming that with all the excitement he had forgotten to turn off both machines.

But again, as he was leaving, the humming noise was heard. He turned on the lights and saw the blade of the slicing machine still on. Assuming there was a faulty in the machine, he bent down to unplug it. He scratched the back of his head and sighed. It was too late to call for help. Everyone was already gone or about to leave. As he turned to leave, it started again. "What the hell?"

* * *

><p>Dean hung up the phone and sighed. "I finally got a meeting with Missus Fletcher. She's harder to talk to then God himself," he commented.<p>

A knock came on the door and they glanced at each other in surprise. "We don't need housekeeping today," Sam called out but another hard knock came in reply. Dean put his hand on the handle and looked to his brother. Sam reached under his pillow and took the safety off his gun. He nodded that he was ready. Dean then unlocked the door and swung it open revealing the intruder.

"Get off my case," the woman immediately barked. Her hair was tied back in a high pony tail and her short pink dress flowed over her tight skinny jeans.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he said slightly excited and he tried not to smile.

"Nice to see you too, Dean," she smiled as they embraced warmly.

"Damn Stac, you look good," Sam could hardly control his jaw dropping.

She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his large shoulders. "Yeah I know," she winked up at him and smiled. "Now seriously, get off my case."

"You can't call dibs on a case," Dean huffed closing the door and relocking it.

"I can and I have. I got here a whole week before you so... dibs!" She was eating at a diner the night before when she saw the familiar Impala pull into the car park of the only motel in town.

Sam sighed and tried to come to a compromise. "Can't we just share the case?"

"How 'bout we don't?" she replied bluntly. "The last time I agreed to share a case with you guys, you ruined the upholstery in my car." Sam squirmed when she slapped him hard across the arm. It wasn't one of their finest moments, he'd agree. They ran out of silver bullets while chasing a pack of werewolves and decided to lock two in her car while they reloaded.

"But we just got an appointment with the mayor," Dean whined at the thought of all his hard work being taken away from him.

"You got what?" she couldn't believe it. "I've been trying to get an appointment with her but she keeps turning me down," she looked to Sam.

"Don't look at me, Dean just called her up and she said yes."

"Dammit," she swore under her breath. She knew what was coming next.

"C'mon, say it," a smile rose on Dean's lips and rolled his hand in front of him.

She groaned as she watched both men smile at each other. It was something she started saying whenever a case went her way but it was times like these that it bit her in the ass. "You're that damn good," she reluctantly let the words fall from her grinding teeth.

"Hell yeah, we are," Dean laughed playfully slapping his brother's arm.

"Just ask her one thing for me, will you?" she pleaded when their laughter died down.

"That depends," Dean argued. "Do we get our case back?"

She sighed at the thought of all her hard work being taken away from her. "Fine!" she rolled her eyes. "You don't have to be such a bitch about it."

* * *

><p>Last week was the start of an annual two day music festival half ten minute walk from the town. It was being held in a local farmer's field that converted into a camping site at night. It was just after dusk when Stacy decided to pop into her tent for a short nap before the next band started. She only had her eyes closed for five minutes when she heard the first scream. 'A scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie,' one newspaper described it. A bird was trapped in a young woman's hair. "Nothing unusual," Stacy shrugged. "I've seen girls scream at the sight of a pigeon on the other side of the street!"<p>

People laughed at first but then more people were heard screaming. Stacy remembered looking up and seeing the sky black with birds. Then just as quickly as they appeared, they were gone.

Dean asked her what they looked like. "Black with long wings, maybe," she tried to remember, "I've looked at so many bird pictures that I'm starting to forget what they looked like. But I don't believe they're related to R.J. Brown's death."

Robert James Brown had just turned fifty and owned the local butchers in town. His daughter found him with half his arm and face on the floor after being dismembered by the meat slicing machine. His death was ruled as accidental. But the three hunters knew otherwise. They had done their homework and found that at five year intervals there were three or four 'accidental deaths' in the town.

The first, ten years ago, was a young mother. She died when she ran out in front of a school bus. The second, a grandfather and soon to be great grandfather, tripped over a toy and fell down the stairs. The third was a single father who was running with a pair of scissors. He tripped and fell on them, piercing his heart.

Five years later, there were four deaths that were also classed as accidental. A young man fell out of a hot air balloon to his death. An elderly woman got trapped in her basement and suffered a severe asthma attack. A teenage boy suffered the ultimate embarrassment and tripped over a pebble while trying to impress his girlfriend with a few bicycle tricks. Unfortunately, he wasn't wearing a helmet and his head split open on impact instantly killing him. The only connection between all the cases lay with the third and fourth case. The girlfriend's step-brother also died the same way.

In vein, they tried to find other connections, whether by dates, numbers, family or friends. But apart from that one case, they found nothing. The step-brother was the son of the mayor and she quickly ended her meeting with Dean when he started asking questions about him. They had no leads and no reasons for the deaths.

It was close to nine when Stacy finally looked at her watch. Her eyes were tired and her back ached. "Right, I'm done," she declared stretching her arms behind her head. "Who wants some food?"

Dean immediately closed his laptop and raised his hand like a child in a classroom. Sam declined saying there was a vending machine around the corner he could use. But Stacy closed his book on him. "Tough," she told him. "You're coming with us."

Sam had been depressed lately and had withdrawn into himself. A demon case had gone terribly wrong. The demon he had killed was part of a very close group and to get revenge, they went after Sam's family. Now, his wife Amanda was looking for a divorce and his two girls were afraid to be alone at night. He knew that the only thing that would stop him thinking about it was hunting supernatural. And Dean knew the only way he could help protect his brother was to go with him.

They found a small pizza restaurant that looked like a family run business. Dean and Stacy found a table near to the back out of the way of the local customers as Sam went to find some menus. A small dark bird watched them form a nearby tree.

"But the raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only that one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour," Stacy smiled to herself.

"Huh?" Dean looked up at her. His face was confused as if she had just given him a mathematical equation that only Albert Einstein could solve.

"You know," she nodded in the direction of the bird. "Quoth the raven, 'nevermore'." But still, he had no idea what she was talking about. She took a menu from Sam and told him to forget it.

They ordered one large pizza between them and then ate in silence. They didn't ask about life because they knew how things were. They didn't ask about family because they lived close enough to each other to know. They didn't even ask about their cases because all the hunts were the same. So, instead they sat in silence and were comfortable with that.


	34. Of moons, birds & monsters: Ch 2

**AN: **Mistofleesput an idea in my head and I decided to try it out... don't worry, it's all good!

* * *

><p><strong>Part 2<strong>

Castiel was pacing back and forth in one corner of the room. Dean had called him asking for his assistance in searching for Stacy. She had fallen asleep in their motel room as they stayed up late researching the case. Everything seemed normal but in the early hours of the morning, Sam woke up to a crashing noise. His eyes widened when he saw his brother being thrown to the other side of the room. His initial thought was a demon but then he saw Stacy. She had a blank expression on her face and her hair blew in the air as a whirl of objects flew around her. Sam shouted out to her but she flung out her hand and he was violently thrown to the far wall. When Dean finally helped him up, the room was quiet and Stacy was gone. When they eventually found her, they brought her back to the motel. They were now waiting for her to wake up. "This is the future I foresaw," Cas finally stopped pacing and faced the woman.

"This?" Dean narrowed his eyes and tried not to laugh. "This is the moment you saw in the future? Stacy throwing a couple of tables around is what's had you running scared for the last ten years. Really?"

Cas looked up to him and sighed. "Well, obviously it gets a lot worse." He future he witnessed saw Stacy wiping out the whole of North America in one blinding light. He looked back to the woman. "We should kill her now before she's aware of what she's done and before she can fight back."

"Yeah," Sam nodded, "over my dead body."

"Considering the outcome," Cas tilted his head. "That can easily be arranged."

Sam nervously looked from Cas to his brother who grunted that no one was going to die tonight. "Not on my watch."

Stacy groaned herself awake. Her head felt heavy and the voices loudly echoed around her head. Her eyes hurt in the soft light that was shining in the room. She could feel her hands bound and her feet tied to the chair. The three men watched over her, waiting. One was worried and two were ready for a fight.

"As much as I love you guys," she squinted when she realised she couldn't get up, "this isn't what I'd call romantic."

Dean asked her what she remembered from last night.

"Um, I went to sleep and then I woke up... here," she still didn't understand why she was tied up.

"You went demonic on us," Dean informed her. There was no point in beating around the bush. They didn't know what was going on and hoped she'd have some answers.

"That's impossible," she tried to laugh but their faces wouldn't allow it. "I have the picture to prove it."

Dean nodded to Sam giving him permission to step closer to her. She told him to look on her right hip. Just above the belt line, he found the tattoo they all shared. Rufus told her she processed the symbol under her skin when she was born but she didn't want to take any chances. She looked around the room. The table and chairs were broken and the mirrors were smashed. "Did I... do this?" she didn't believe what they told her.

"Did you do a...?"

"Yes."

"How about a...?"

"Yes," Sam answered her. All the exorcisms and spells they could think of to bring her back to her normal self, they tried them all. She was demonic but she wasn't possessed. When Cas and Dean found her, she was curled up in a ball in a children's playground.

"What do you remember about last night?" Dean tried again.

"Nothing," she slowly shook her head, her eyes filling up. She bit her bottom lip. Her mind was blank.

"C'mon you must remember something," he drilled her. "For as long as I've known you, I never remember you sleep walking."

But she couldn't remember anything. She couldn't even recall her dreams.

"Did you hurt anyone?" Cas asked.

She looked from one man to the next and shrugged. "I don't know."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure it's not Helena?" Dean wondered running out of options.<p>

"Positive," they both replied.

"She's tricked you before. How can you be so sure?"

"Because I'd know," they said in unison again and quickly glanced at each other. Stacy was sitting on the edge of the bed with Cas standing nearby. They eventually untied her when they were satisfied she wasn't a danger to herself or to anyone around her.

"Okay, this has been rolling round my head for a while so I'll just come out and say it," her leg twitched before she spoke again. "This wouldn't be Raphael, would it?" she looked to Cas and hoped. "Who's to say I said yes to him in my sleep?"

But Cas assured her it was impossible. "Anyway, if he had taken over you, he wouldn't just appear at night."

She nodded in agreement yet it still didn't answer her problem. Something or someone had gotten hold of her and was using it to hurt people. Or at least, she thought, only hurt people. The thoughts of killing someone without her knowledge made her sick to the core.

Sam's phone rang and he immediately recognised the number. It was Connor and he answered it in a hushed whisper.

"Well, you know what we have to do, right? We have to wait for you to fall asleep again so we can figure this thing out," Dean said.

"Nuh uh, I am never going to sleep again," she shook her head like she had control over it. "Ever!" She rolled her eyes and sighed. "I don't understand this. It could have been happening all week without my knowledge. What if I killed RJ Brown?" she hoped it wasn't true but she couldn't remember a thing. "Why didn't people recognise me when I started asking questions?"

Dean shrugged.

"Yeah, I got it," Sam switched on the television and went to the appropriate station. He then hung up and watched the story unfold.

A news bulletin was replaying a security video. "Again, we're asking the public to be extra vigilant," the news reader said. "If you see this female do not engage with her, instead call this number immediately." A number flashed across the bottom of the screen. The video showed a woman, lightly dressed, smashing her way though buildings and injuring anyone who got in the way. Then it showed another two separate videos of other nights, showing the same woman with the same destruction.

Stacy stepped closer to the television and sat beside Dean when a drawing of the suspect appeared. "That looks nothing like me," she remarked quietly.

"I think the nose looks pretty good," Dean tried to joke but Sam shook his head at him.

"Dean's right," he groaned when the newsreader called out the number again.

"What?" her eyes narrowed. "My nose isn't that big!"

"No," Sam corrected her. "I mean about you going to sleep again."

She gave a heavy sigh and glanced between the two men. "I don't know, you guys," she whined. "It sounds pretty crazy especially since we don't even know what it is we're dealing with."

Dean suggested that they tie her down again.

"As attractive as that prospect is," she gave a quick smile, "I think I'd prefer to just stay awake tonight."

* * *

><p>They checked her into the adjoining room that night. They had hardly stepped outside the motel room all day. Cas had gone back to Heaven and Sam had interviewed some of the witnesses of the other night's events. Stacy placed her bag on the bed and watched Dean give Sam some handcuffs. "I swiped these from the sheriff's office and modified them a little." The chains from one cuff to the other were heavy and long and rattled loudly. "Call me in a couple of hours," he slapped Sam's shoulder tagging him in for the first shift.<p>

"You guys are hypocrites, you know that?" she said when Dean had left the room.

"What? Why?" Sam dropped the chains on the table and was clearly hurt by the accusation. He thought they were trying to help her the only way they knew how.

"Because, after all the crap I've been through _now_ you decide to tie me up!" she began pulling some clothes out of her bag.

"Do you even know what hypocrite means?" he smirked.

She looked to him, her eyes narrowed. "Condescending doesn't look well on you Sam."

He dropped his eyes and she turned back to her bag. She gave a shrug and a laugh. "Hell, there were a couple of times when I was scared of you too but I never resorted to this." She smelled one of her pink tops ensuring it was clean enough to wear. He argued saying this was the only conclusion they could come up with. "The only conclusion," she laughed louder this time. "So are you saying that not once did you even think about locking me in Bobby's vault?"

He stepped towards her. "Did you read my thoughts? You shouldn't have read them."

"You didn't give me much of a choice, Sammy. I woke up with my hands tied behind my back. It's not like I could read Cas' mind, although I knew was he was thinking. If it makes you feel any better, your thoughts were a lot nicer than Dean's." She pulled her shirt over her head and folded it out of habit. "I'm surprised you're not gagging me in case I use a spell to set myself free."

"I'm not going to gag you but did you not hear how you were last night?" he fought his half dressed friend. "When we tried to get near you, you just threw us out of the way."

"So," she stuck her arms into the pink top. "I can do that now!"

"Yeah," he shook his head, "but you're not going to."

"I don't know about that," she shrugged. "I am pretty pissed." She shoved passed him and threw the chains in his face. He struggled to grab hold of them before they hit the ground. "Let's get this over with, shall we?" she grabbed the back of a chair and placed it in front of him.

"Where do you want me? Here? Or how 'bout here, beside the bed?" she shoved him out of the way. "That way you can have a rest while you keep an eye on me. Or how 'bout in the centre of the room?" she shoved him again. "That way I'm under the light. Or how 'bout further away from the door? That way I have to travel further to escape."

She went to shove him again but he tightly grabbed her arm and told her to stop. Her blood boiled so close to the surface, her skin was hot to the touch.

Then without warning, Sam leaned down and kissed her on the lips catching her off guard. Immediately, she dropped the chair to push him away.

"What the hell, Sammy?" she pushed him away with her free hand. "Stop it!"

Sam gasped at what he had just done and quickly apologised.

"Are you kidding me?" she shouted at him and slapped his arm. Again, he apologised.

Yet, still he held onto her arm and still she rested her hand on his chest. Seconds turned into moments and they shared a look. When he leaned down to kiss her a second time, she didn't push him away.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: <strong>:0


	35. Of moons, birds & monsters: Ch 3

**Part 3**

The door slammed closed and the curtains swished open. Dean's eyes opened wide and he was momentarily confused by the sunlight entering the room. "What time is it?" he got up off his stomach and wiped the drool from his chin. "Is it morning already? Why didn't you wake me?"

Sam was standing at the end of the bed. He had a large grin on his face and a white paper bag in his hand. "Because I'm a good brother plus I wanted to buy breakfast."

Dean's nose caught the enticing smell of fried bacon and eggs and he instantly woke up. "So, how'd you sleep?" he asked pulling the coffee cups out of the bag.

"Fine," Sam lied. He hardly slept at all.

"And Stacy? How'd she sleep?"

"I've got some good news," he changed the subject. He hated having to lie to his brother. "There was a death in the town last night. The cops found a man chewing on the stomach of his room mate."

Dean looked up at him and twisted his face wondering what his brother considered bad news.

"It means that whatever was in Stac has moved onto someone else."

Dean nodded and mumbled that it was good news however he was still slightly weary. Stacy entered the room with a brighter smile than Sam. She wished a good morning to everyone. "Sammy told me the good news," Dean nodded to her.

"Really?" she stood next to him. "That's brilliant!" Sam had promised that he'd tell him everything and she was delighted that he had done so. She hated lying to Dean.

"And I really wanted the chance to tie you up tonight," he sat down and dug into his breakfast.

"Wait," she cocked her head and sat down too. "What are we talking about?"

"The guy who murdered his room mate in town."

"Oh... that," she nodded slowly and sighed. The lies had begun.

"Why?" Dean pulled the lid of his hot coffee. "What are _you_ talking about?"

She looked to Sam for help. It wasn't her place to say but he was no help when he sheepishly looked down at his food.

"Okay, what is it?" Dean dropped his coffee cup and wiped his hands in his jeans. "There's something going on with you guys. I can feel it. You both came in with huge smiles on your faces," he pointed to his brother. "And don't say it's about the other murder. Tell me the truth."

Stacy looked back to Sam and sighed. "Okay," she started. "The truth is..."

"The truth is," Sam interrupted and widened his eyes at her, "we didn't get much sleep last night." Dean wiped his hand over his mouth waiting for an answer. "We stayed up all night talking."

"So... you didn't tie her up?" Dean quickly concluded.

"No, I didn't," Sam stood his ground.

"Do you know how dangerous that could have been? She could have hurt you, Sammy." Dean's voice suddenly rose as the anger boiled up inside him.

"Um, I'm right here," Stacy held up her hand and tried to intervene.

"Well, she didn't, did she?" Sam's voice rose to the same level.

"Next time I give you an order, you follow it through," he yelled.

"Oh next time you give _me_ an order..."

"Stop it," Stacy shouted over him. "That's enough," she banged her hands on the table. "What's done is done, okay?" They both looked at her in surprise. She wasn't one for raising her voice especially at them, no matter how angry she was. "Now, we have another victim and still no answers but this time we have a witness," she ordered them to act like professionals. "So, put on your best suits, go down to the station and question the guy."

* * *

><p>The deputy sheriff studied their badges carefully. "I didn't know the FBI had jurisdiction here?"<p>

"We follow the weird and wonderful," Dean smirked taking his badge back from the deputy and sliding it in his breast pocket. The deputy narrowed his eyes and asked to speak to their supervisor.

"Okay," Sam reluctantly pulled out the card from his wallet. "But just to warn you, she's not exactly a morning person."

"Or an afternoon or evening person," Dean added with a smile.

The deputy said he'd take his chances and dialled the number leaving it on speaker phone.

"This better be good," a woman barked.

The young deputy picked up the receiver nervously stating he had two of her agents in front of him.

"Does one have a gorgeous smile and the other have a smile that thinks he's gorgeous?" Stacy asked. When they worked a case together, she often played the supervisor role to the agents they played. The deputy looked up at the two grinning men. "Um, yes... yes ma'am," he replied and turned his back to them as she tore one into him.

Sam sighed. "Why does she always have to be so hard on them?"

Dean laughed. "I don't know but I think it's hilarious when they suddenly realise the mistake they made in calling her."

* * *

><p>The deputy led the accused into the interrogating room. The young man sat across from the two agents and nervously starting biting his nails even though there was hardly anything left. "I didn't like the guy, okay?" the man mumbled. "And that's that." He had been interrogated all night by the sheriff, the mayor and even the local priest. They all wanted to know what was going through his head when he decided that eating his room-mate was a good idea.<p>

Dean opened the case file and read the officer's report. "The arresting officer said that when he entered the room you were saying, 'he's tasty, oh so tasty'!"

"I was drunk," the man said quickly.

"Your tox levels were normal," Sam read.

"Then I was high, okay?"

Both brothers glanced at each other. "Look, Mister Egan," Sam closed their case file. "We've been in this business a long time now. There's very little you can say that'll surprise us."

Dean even promised to keep it off the record. "Just our little secret," he winked.

The young man looked at them both and gave a heavy sigh. He leaned his head back and made sure no one was listening. "I thought he was chocolate," he cleared his throat nervously before continuing. "You know those Easter bunnies that are like... two feet tall? Well," his eyes darted around the room. "I thought he was like... human size."

Sam looked to his brother and raised an eyebrow.

"But you know what the weird thing was?"

_It gets weirder?_ Dean thought.

"He actually tasted like chocolate!"

Dean and Sam quickly left the sheriff's station. "I've heard of the twinkie defence but never the sweet tooth defence," Dean smirked.

Sam looked through the case file when they sat back in their car and wondered. "Huh, it says here that Mister Egan is a diabetic."

"So?"

"So, if he ate that much chocolate, he'd die." Dean asked him what he was thinking but Sam just shrugged. "I don't know yet."


	36. Of moons, birds & monsters: Ch 4

**Part 4**

"Sam!"

The screams rang through his ears. Pain shot through his heart and he hoped he would get to them in time before it would break. He jumped out of the car before it had time to come to a full stop. He slid on the wet grass as he turned the sharp corner with speed and kicked down the locked door.

"Daddy!"

He tore up the stairs and into the pink bedroom. He grabbed the attacking demon from behind and brought him to the floor. He then slid his blade through the demon's throat and grabbed his crying girls in both hands. He brought them downstairs and placed them into the waiting arms of his brother.

"Sam!"

He rang back up the stairs to save his wife. He ran into his empty bedroom. He opened the wardrobe, upturned the bed and tore down the curtains looking for her.

"Sam!"

His eyes flickered open and he groaned awake as he rolled over in his bed. He wiped the large beads of sweat that covered his face and tried to calm his heart rate down by sighing heavily. He tried closing his eyes again but every blink led him back to that night. The memories seemed so real. He threw his arm out to touch Stacy. Last night, he was also plagued by the same nightmares but holding her close to his body somehow made everything better. But on this night, all he felt was an empty pillow. A light flickered under the bathroom door and a shadow passed by.

"Sam!"

This time the scream was real. He quickly jumped over the bed to the bathroom. Stacy stood with her hands hanging over the sink. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened when he saw the amount of blood on them. It was everywhere. There was blood on her hands, arms, her chest and legs. Blood was dripping to the floor and a pool was starting to form under her feet.

"I don't think it's my blood," she turned to him, her eyes raw with tears.

His training kicked in and he picked her up under the arms like she was a doll. He placed her in the shower. The water was freezing but he didn't care. He washed her down and ran his hands all over her body searching in vain for a wound that wasn't there. "It's not by blood. It's not my blood," was all he could hear her say.

* * *

><p>Stacy sat on the bed. Her hair was towel dried and Sam had found her a dressing gown to wear. She was staring at the floor for what seemed like forever. A cockroach had fallen on its back and was struggling to get to his feet. Sam sat beside her. His arm was tightly clasped around her back. Dean was pacing the room with such fury she was expecting flames to appear at his heels. He was angry, annoyed and pissed off, mainly at himself for allowing the situation to worsen but he was directing it all towards Sam.<p>

"How could you have been so irresponsible?" he spat.

Sam defended himself but Stacy knew it was her that was the irresponsible one. She should have pulled away from Sam when she had the chance. She should have listened to Dean from the start. He was right. It was all too simple to be over so quickly.

"You're right, Dean," she whispered in a hoarse voice. Her eyes never tore away from the cockroach. She was too afraid to look up at him. She was still lying to him about her secret nights with his younger brother.

"You're damn right I'm right," he yelled. He stopped pacing and turned to them.

"No," the younger brother shook his head in defiance.

But she turned to him and softly said his name. "I can't remember anything about what happened tonight and we just can't wait for another news bulletin to tell us what I've done. It's safer if you tie me up…"

"No," he stood up not wanting to believe what he was hearing. "I'm not going to do that. I know you didn't hurt anyone."

"No, Sam… you hope I didn't hurt anyone but there was so much blood on me, I could swim in it." She looked up at his sad eyes and could hear the word 'love' being thrown around his head. That was the last thing she needed to hear at that moment and she stood in front of him, gently touching his arm. All his thoughts suddenly stopped and his mind was quiet. "It's for the best," she sighed. "At least until we figure this thing out." She made him nod with her then she turned to Dean. "I'm going to give you a spell," she told him. "It's basically my kryptonite so don't go playing with it."

Dean wondered what she meant but nodded in agreement.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Stacy entered the motel room, eager to tell Sam what she had just seen. She had remembered something from earlier. It was the reason for all the blood on her hands. But before she could turn on the light, she saw a dark figure sitting on the table in front of her. The edge of his face captured what little light that was in the room. "Dean?" she whispered. "Jesus, you scared the crap out of me," she paused. He was twisting something shiny in his hand. "What are you doing?"<p>

"Thinking?" he sighed. "I'm thinking how you got out of those shackles again."

She looked to the chair they had put her in. The locks were thrown on the floor. She couldn't remember how she out of them either. She looked over to the bed. Sam was fast asleep. She wondered why he was asleep when he was supposed to be watching her.

"Cas was right about you. You're too dangerous to be around. I should have listened to my gut when all this first started happening." His voice was slow and his words were carefully thought out. "You know what has to happen now, don't you?" He stared up at her. His eyes were glistening and angry.

She swallowed hard and nodded once. He was going to kill her. "Is there nothing else I can do?" she pleaded. She could feel a lump form in her throat as she spoke. It made her voice crack.

"There is one thing," he stood up and stepped closer to her. "You can run," his voice growled so deeply she knew not to argue with him. "Just go now and don't ever look back. I can tell Sam you couldn't take it anymore. I can tell him you were scared of what you had become and you couldn't take hurting us anymore."

She reluctantly nodded. Running away was better than death and if it meant sparing Sam's feelings, she was going to take it. She moved passed him to grab her bag and jacket. She watched as he turned his back to her. "Dean?" she whispered before she left. She could feel the tears trying to escape. "I'm sorry." She didn't hang around for a response.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Only one more chapter left and then the whole series is over. A little stuck on the ending, though. Don't know whether to make it happy or sad.

Ummm, what to do… what to do…


	37. Of moons, birds & monsters: Ch 5

**Part 5**

The door slammed and someone kicked him awake. "What the hell?" Dean groaned and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He was having a good dream too. He was back at the graveyard where he got to put the deadly bullet into Azezel's shoulder. It was a dream he loved repeating.

"She's gone and she didn't come back!" Sam groaned pulling his hands through his shaggy hair. He rubbed the tiredness from his eyes and paced the room. He had run out of ideas.

"Who's gone? Who didn't come back?" Dean sat up so quickly his head felt dizzy and he grabbed on to it to try to slow it down. "What's going on?" The curtains swung open and the sunlight blinded his worn out eyes. The years of restless nights were finally catching up to him.

"Stacy!" Sam was standing over him now. "She didn't come back to bed last night. Usually, if she gets out, she comes back to bed but she didn't come back. I've looked everywhere and I can't find her. What if she has really hurt someone this time? What if the cops caught her? What do we do Dean?"

His big brother swung his legs out over the side of the bed and looked over at the empty chair completely confused. "How did she even get out of her shackles?" One handcuff was lying on the floor and the other was in the middle of the table. He was sure he tied them correctly. He knew covering her mouth wouldn't be enough and he shook his head. He took the first shift but he couldn't even remember falling asleep. "Wait...," Sam's words were slowly making sense in his head. "What do you mean… _come_ back to bed?" He stood up next to his brother, his eyes widened when the realisation hit him. "No... dude! She's so close, we're practically related," he scrunched up his nose at the thought of them sleeping together. It would be like kissing a sister. "When the hell did this happen?"

"Two nights ago," Sam shrugged. "But it's not important, right now."

"Not important!" Dean bellowed. "You never put her in shackles, did you? You just tied her up a different way."

"Are you watching the news report?" Castiel suddenly appeared in the room with a breeze.

"Do you mind?" Dean snapped. "I'm giving out to my brother here."

Castiel apologised and waited his turn.

"She's posessed, Dean. She's not dangerous. It's a demon or a ghost." Sam felt sick with worry and if he wasn't so angry with Dean's response, he thought he might actually cry.

"It's neither of those," Cas interuppted.

Sam turned around. "Then it's something else… an animal... something?"

But Castiel dashed all his hopes by saying it was impossible.

"Hang on a minute," Dean lifted up a finger and cocked his head with a thought. "The other night, she said she saw a raven. Remember at dinner? She said that tongue twister thing," he walked over to the table and searched through his bag for Bobby's journal.

"Um, yeah," Sam shook his head and tried to think back, hoping it was going to lead somewhere worthwhile. "Quoth the raven, 'nevermore,'" he turned to Cas and told him it was a poem by Edgar Allen Poe.

"But I don't think it was a raven," Dean flicked through some pages. "I think it was a nightjar. In several countries, they're called night hawks," Dean found the page he was looking for and entered an address on his laptop. "They're also known as goatsuckers. Lore says that at dusk they suck the udders of goats and cows infecting them with a disease that eventually leads to their deaths," he read from the website and turned the laptop around to let Sam see. "There have been human cases. Although, they've never been officially connected to the bird because they've always been closed as accidental."

He looked up at Sam and wondered if Stacy had been bitten that night of the festival too. Maybe there was a bird in her tent that she wasn't aware of.

"It's poisoning their nightmares," Sam conluded. It had been annoying him since they spoke to the last victim. "The mother who was hit by a school bus, was afraid that it would happen to her children. The old woman who had a panic attack when she got locked in her basement, was terrified of the dark. The girl who witnessed he boyfriend fall off his bike, was terrified the same thing would happen to her step-brother. And the diabetic was afraid if he started eating chocolate, he wouldn't be able to stop."

Dean shook his head. "So, what's Stacy afraid of?"

"Maybe she's afraid of her family abandoning her when she needs them the most?" Sam replied sarcastically. "Or maybe she's afraid of her only friends not trusting her anymore?"

"Okay Sammy, I get it," Dean groaned and rolled his eyes. "I'm a shitty friend but what's her greatest fear?" They both wondered quietly.

"How about being pocessed by Raphael?" Cas interuppted them and switched on the television. There was a news report informing everyone to stay out of Texas where a wild fire was out of control. "It's not a wild fire," Cas informed them.

"Oklahoma? What the hell is she doing in Oklahoma?" Dean closed the lid of the laptop.

"She's hilucinating, remember? She could be seeing anything right now," Sam said and looked to Cas. "Can you take us there?"

Cas nodded. "I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

><p>Cas transported them to within two meters of where she stood. Any closer would be too dangerous, he told them. He also placed a protective shield between them and her instructing the brothers not to pass it otherwise they would receive serious burns or suffer a quick death.<p>

Sam called out to Stacy and tried to get her attention. Even with the shield, he could feel his body sweat with the heat. Stacy had her hands up at her sides, palms out. Beams of light were being sent from her body over to a tall tree that stood across from her. Amazingly, the tree hadn't caught fire yet but it was quickly burning from the inside out. One slight breeze could easily blow the charcoal remains away.

Sam cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted her name again.

"What are you doing here?" she snapped at him with anger in her voice.

Sam worryingly looked to Dean. She had never spoken to him like that even when she was angry.

"What are you seeing right now?" Dean called out. The roar of the light was deafening.

"What do you care?" she yelled back barley acknowledging his existence.

"You've been poisoned. Whatever you're seeing right now isn't real," he informed her.

She gave him a quick look. "Yeah right," she smirked. "As if I'm going to believe you after what you said to me earlier."

Dean looked to Sam and shrugged. He hadn't spoken to her since he tied her up. Even after Sam had fallen asleep, she was quiet. He assumed she was worried about what was happening to her and so didn't speak either. "It was a nightjar you saw the other night at the festival. When it bites people, it infects them with a poison that heightens their greatest fears. You've been infected. So whatever you think I said to you or whatever you think you're seeing right now… it isn't real."

He saw her eyes twitch and he tried talking to her again.

"You can fight this, Stac. Just think about it logically... I really don't want to use your kryptonite, especially in front of company."

Castiel looked over at him and wondered what he meant. Did she have a weakness? If so, why wasn't Dean using it? Surely it would be safer to bring it out now before the situation turned more dangerous. He walked away from Sam and towards the tree. He turned to her and wondered what she was seeing. The heat blast from the light was so strong that it wasn't even safe for him to stand in front of the protective shield. The temperature was increasing and he could see what it was doing to Stacy. Cuts and burns were taking longer to heal and blood had started to drip from her arms. They didn't have long, Cas thought.

Stacy increased her strength. They were all after her now. They all wanted a piece of her. Raphael was still standing in front of her. He was a lot stronger than she could have imagined and was still fighting back. Alastair suddenly appeared into view and stood next to Raphael. They whispered something to each other then turned to her and smiled. She increased her strength again. She could hear Dean speak but she was trying not to listen. He was standing next to Lucifer. Of course, he wanted her to stop.

"Please Stacy," Lucifer yelled. "This isn't real. You have to look at me," he ordered.

She quickly glanced over at him and noticed he was crying. Not just one or two tears but the whole flood gates had opened up and he was trying, unsuccessfully, to stop his bottom lip from quivering.

Her strength decreased in confusion. She wondered why he was crying. Was it a trick? She decreased her strength a little further to listen to his thoughts and one word immediately popped out, love. "Sam?" she whispered.

"That's right," Lucifer nodded and swallowed his tears. "I'm Sam," he placed his hand on his chest. He then pointed to his right. "And this is Dean," and to his left, "and Cas."

She followed his hand gestures. "Cas?" she repeated. Alastair nodded. She looked back to Lucifer and Dean and shook her head. Her head was so confused she didn't know what to think. Her strength decreased a little more. She looked back to where Raphael stood. He wasn't smiling anymore and for a second she swore she saw leaves.

* * *

><p>The clouds parted and the sun hit off everything in it's path. It slid through the shades and beamed onto her eyelids. She squirmed her eyes away from the brightness and pulled at the chord that lay across her top lip. Her feet felt trapped and for a moment she thought she was in the shackles again. But when she awoke, she realised it was an oxegyn tube that was around her mouth and a morphine drip that was in her arm. Sam was sleeping in a chair on the other side of the room. His head was hanging over his shoulder and one leg was crossed over the other. She huffed a laugh and pulled herself upright.<p>

"What's so funny?" Dean appeared at the doorway with a cup of coffee in one hand and some magazines in the other.

"It's just the last time I was in a hospital room, I was getting a scan of Connor," she smiled as he walked around the foot of her bed. She didn't even deliver in a hospital. She was working a case with John when he had to pull over to help her deliver in the back seat of the Impala.

Dean placed the magazines on the table beside her and offered her some water. "Cas said your healing defenses would be down and it was better to bring you to a hospital."

She nodded and took a sip. Her lips tightened as she handed the cup back to him. It wasn't water. "Do I even want to know what's in it?" she asked concluding it was a medicine to the poisin.

He leaned against the window blocking out the sun and tilted his head. "I wouldn't!"

She nodded and asked how long she had been down.

"Three days now," he told her he sent Connor home to get some rest. "The lack of sleep has caught up to you. How do you feel?"

"Like a right fool," she sighed. "It all seemed so real."

"Hey," he shrugged. "It's happened to the best of us."

She looked over to Sam. His dreams were making him drool. "Has he told you what happened between us yet?" Dean nodded. "It was just a one night thing... well, a two night thing," she corrected herself.

"And too much information," his eyes widened as he sipped his coffee.

"So, you're not mad? Sam said you were always rooting for him and Mandy to get back together."

Dean shrugged and shook his head. "I used to think that a hunter's life was to hunt supernatural at night and go back to an empty motel room during the day. That was the gig… a life of loneliness. I even tried to make it work with Lisa and Ben but it ended just as badly as it did for Sammy." He looked to his little brother slouched in the chair. His eye lids were moving rapidly from a dream he was experiencing and Dean hoped it was a good dream this time. He knew his little brother had been experiencing a lot of nightmares since Amanda and his girls were attacked. He looked down to his black coffee and sighed. He wished he could make it Irish. "And then I met Sarah and now I have two beautiful children. And I see you with Connor. He's in college with every possibility in front of him and not one of them is demon related." He looked up at her. Her eyes were so narrow he could hardly see her pupils and her nose scrunched up like she smelled something awful. "What?" he shrugged.

"You're not getting all chick flick on me in your old age, are you?"

He laughed. "I wouldn't consider myself that old!"

She raised an eyebrow. "Those grey hairs might tell a different story."

Sam woke to laughter in the room. Stacy was proped up in the bed. Her neck was bandaged on the left and her left arm was in a hard cast. Her face was heavily scratched on one side like she had just been dragged along a concrete floor. But still she laughed. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and the drool away from his chin and got out of his chair. He cleared his throat to ask her how she was.

"Bruised like a peach," she smiled, "but this morphine is helping," she raised her arm in the air.

"Chuck Norris has nothing on you," Dean grinned.

Sam sat on the edge of the bed and gently held her bruised hand. He looked up to his brother who immediately figured he wanted some privacy. "I'm going to…" Dean stumbled. "Look for a way of ridding this town of these birds." He shared a smile with them and left the room, shutting the door behind him.

Sam turned his attention back to Stacy. A feeling came over him like it had suddenly been awoken and was about to burst through his chest. He hadn't felt this much love since his girls were born. He didn't even feel this much love around his, now, ex-wife. He loved everything about Stacy. He loved the way her eyes widened with delight when a new demon was discovered or when she got help working a new case. He loved the way the corner of her mouth tightened when she tried to keep a straight face while handing out a sarcastic comment. He loved how her cheeks blushed slightly whenever she retold old cases she messed up. He loved how he could sit in silence with her and not feel uncomfortable. And even though she always cursed the day she met him, he loved to see how much she loved, his father, John Winchester. Whenever she spoke of him, she always closed her eyes, smiled and raised her shoulders up to her ears like she was remembering some special moment they shared. She knew his father's habits and traits, what he was like through his good days and his bad. He loved how, when he or Dean would do something outrageous, she would roll her eyes and say they were just like their father. He also loved how he didn't have to explain things to her. She knew what winning a case felt like and how much it hurt to lose.

"Stop it, Sam," she whispered pulling him out of his thoughts.

He tilted his head wondering what she meant when the realization hit him. "You know it's rude to eavesdrop," he said, slightly hurt that she would read his mind. They had agreed many years ago that, apart from her family, she wouldn't read the minds of three people; his, Bobby's and Dean's.

"It's not really eavesdropping when the other person is screaming," she pulled her hand away from his and sighed. "What you're feeling for me isn't love, it's… relief… and friendship."

Sam's eyes sadden and she couldn't look at him anymore. "I think I know what I'm feeling and it isn't friendship." He went to hold her hand again but instead decided to just touch his index finger on one of hers.

"I don't think… I deserve to be loved," she looked down at his fingers gently touching hers. She could feel her face blush and her eyes water. A tightness formed around her throat and she knew if she spoke another word, she was going to cry. Breaking up with someone you aren't even involved with was harder than it seemed.

"Why?" Sam whispered. "Because of who you are? Because you're a witch? We all deserve a little loving sometimes… even us freaks." He gave a small smile even if she didn't reciprocate. "Tell me you don't love me and I'll stop. Look at me and tell me you don't love me and I'll believe you." He waited for a reply that never came. He leaned down to her and placed his fingers under her chin, slightly tilting her head upwards. He then rested his warm soft lips onto hers. He felt her hand move over the back of his neck and he opened his mouth to kiss her again. He could taste her tongue slide into his mouth and could feel her hand gently pull his head closer towards her.

When she finally released him, he sat back up and smiled. "Now, how can you say you didn't love that?"

The corner of her mouth tightened as she tried to keep a straight face. "Sweetheart, I just did that to shut you up."

His face lit up with a wide smile. He loved her.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:<strong> Yeah, so I went down the soppy route. I figured everyone's been through so much crap, they deserve a little happiness.

Thanks to everyone who stuck with this. Think I'll give the long stories a rest for a long while.

37 chapters just melts your mind!


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